The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose
by Elektra1
Summary: Traveling through time and space? Easy. The Doctor working for Torchwood? NOW you're scared! A series that takes place in 'Pete's World' after Journey's End. Most episodes are self-contained, so it's more or less complete with a possibility of adding more
1. Episode 1

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 1

_****_

Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999

* * *

"Welcome to Today's Edition of Top Gossip, I'm your host, Sarah McKennit. Today's top story: Does Rose Tyler have a new beau? The Vitex heiress, who appeared in the spotlight five years ago after spending her adolescence in a Norwegian boarding school, was seen returning from her cross-country trip with a tall, dark-haired man. Who is he, and are there wedding bells in the future for the country's favourite daughter?"

"In other news: Torchwood – our ambassadors to the stars, or something else? Rumours have been circulating that the Institute, known for creating The Inter-space Alliance with three neighbouring solar systems and protecting our streets from unwanted visitors, have been conducting Top Secret trans-dimensional experiments…"

With a sigh, Rose clicked off the TV, letting the incessant droning of Sarah McKennit disappear into silence. "That didn't take 'em long. You only got here this morning."

The Doctor sunk deeper into the couch and rubbed a hand over his face. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry…"

"S'not your fault. My whole family's in the public eye. Someone was bound to notice I came back from my trip with company."

"That's not what I was apologizing for," he answered softly.

"Oh." Rose looked away.

"I didn't leave you behind," the Doctor said.

She glanced at him, "How did you-"

"Written all over your face. But see? I'm still here." He wiggled his fingers at her, but she didn't seem overly impressed. He grew quiet for a moment. "I was always rubbish at saying goodbye." He reached over and entwined his fingers with hers. She didn't pull away. That was a good sign.

"What was he thinking?"

"I wanted what was best for you, Rose. I wanted you to be happy. I-" he stopped, "…HE didn't realize the position he put you in."

"But you do?" she asked.

"I see it. You're uncomfortable with me."

"I'm not uncomfortable…" Rose looked down at their entwined fingers, noting that his skin was warmer than before, but still cooler than hers. "Explain this metacrisis thing to me."

He took a deep breath, "Basically, I'm a Time Lord with a little bit of human thrown in - one heart and a limited lifespan." He shrugged, "Who knows what else. Everything up here," he tapped his temple, "Is the same." Something akin to panic suddenly swept over his face. "I need a doctor!"

Rose grasped his arm, heart pounding. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"What?" he looked back at her, "OH, nothing. I'm just saying I'll need a doctor. A proper one, now that I'm all mortal."

Rose relaxed. "We have doctors at Torchwood. They can keep quiet." She rested her head against the back of the couch.

The Doctor leaned forward, trying to take in her face, "Let me guess – you are not amused?"

A ghost of something slid over Rose's lips, but quickly faded.

"Was that a smile?"

"No"

The Doctor studied her, "I think that was a smile. The corners titled up and everything."

Rose shrugged.

"Do you know there are planets where smiling is considered an offence?" The Doctor asked. "Have to go around frowning all the time, pretending like you're a miserable wretch just so they don't throw you in jail. Blimey, but those are unpleasant jails. If you weren't frowning before, you'll certainly be frowning after."

"Still has his gob then," Jackie spoke up as she joined the two in the living room with a tray of tea and biscuits. "I saw Top Gossip tonight. At least no one took a picture of him. Still, best be careful. S'not safe to let him roam about on his own just yet. Not with the curfew."

"You have a curfew?" The Doctor asked.

"Just temporary," Rose explained. "When the darkness came, everyone started to panic, so Torchwood recommended a curfew. The Government agreed. Guess we can lift it now though."

"Well I should hope so!" The Doctor replied. "Sounds a bit too militaristic for my taste."

Upstairs, a young child's voice began to cry out for 'Mummy'.

"Oh that'll be Tony," Jackie spoke up, "He's missed me since I've been gone. Promised to read him a story tonight." She leaned over and gave Rose a kiss on the head. "Don't stay up too late. Gloria's made the guest room ready for him." Jackie glanced over at the Doctor, and the message was clear - He would not be spending his nights in Rose's room.

"Thanks, Mum," Rose answered, and Jackie quickly headed up to see her son.

Rose and the Doctor sat in companionable silence for a few minutes before he finally had to speak again. "I'm sorry I'm not him, Rose. I'm something new. I haven't gotten quite used to that myself."

Rose took a sip of her tea, then let out a soft breath. "S'alright, Doctor. I'm a bit different too."

* * *

The Doctor was contemplative as he walked down the pre-dawn streets, tugging his blue suit jacket tighter around him. He had slept four hours, which was more than he was used to, but still less than full humans needed.

He had been to this city many times in the other universe. Making the usual right turn instead of a left, however, had ended up getting him lost. Though he could still sense all of time and space, and the very Earth moving beneath his feet, his senses were still getting used to this new universe. In the next few days, he would grow more attuned to his surroundings.

With a deep breath, he leaned back against a brick wall and closed his eyes. He let out a frustrated breath. He shouldn't have to relearn everything. He shouldn't have to be HERE to begin with. He should be travelling in the TARDIS with Rose. But no, his other self decided he was too dangerous to exist and he needed Rose as a babysitter.

He accused himself of genocide of all things. GENOCIDE! What was he supposed to do, politely ask the Daleks not to destroy reality? Gallifrey burned to rid the universe of the Daleks and it hadn't worked.

The Doctor was amazed at how self-righteous he had become in his tenth incarnation and grew increasingly angry at himself - his other self. What had happened to 'no second chances'? Davros and the Daleks had had far more than a second chance, but still his other self had refused to outright destroy them.

This train of thought only caused the Doctor to grow angrier. Emotions he once had complete control of were now running rampant through his body. Such a loss of control he had never experienced. He sensed the oncoming storm rising within him and for a moment, just a moment, found himself quite willing to let it take over. Willing to let it completely engulf him.

He remembered this. It was the same thing he had felt after the Time War. The uncontrollable need to destroy.

But that was so very long ago. Before he had met Rose.

At the thought of Rose, his anger slowly faded.

Perhaps he would head back to the Tyler mansion and talk to her. Hug her, even. Oh, how he wanted to hug her. Hugging Rose was always nice.

He smiled quietly to himself. Snogging her on the beach was even nicer…

"No one's allowed outside before dawn, mate!" A gruff voice startled the Doctor out of his thoughts. "Don't you read the news? Could get y'self killed with all the space freaks muckin' about."

Oh yes… the curfew. The Doctor recalled his earlier conversation with Rose and Jackie.

He stepped away from the wall and took in the group before him. Three people dressed in similar black uniforms – each one embroidered with the silver Torchwood logo on their upper right arms – stepped closer to him.

"Sorry. New in town," he offered innocently.

"Trev… I think… _I think_ he's one of _them,_" a younger man spoke to the one with the harsh voice.

"What are you on about, Roger?" The man now identified as Trev asked.

The other man held out a scanner to Trev. "My readings are showing a body temperature lower than normal, and brain activity beyond anything humanly possible. But - and here's the odd thing – there are human readings too. Only a bit though."

Before the Doctor could register what was happening, he found himself pinned face first against the wall he had just been leaning against, Trev's muscular forearm pressed against the back of his neck. "So what the hell are you then?"

"Easy, Trev," Roger warned.

"Why? We aren't the bleedin' welcoming committee. Les, check and see if he's got an intergalactic passport!"

The lone female in the group approached the Doctor and immediately patted him down. "You sure he isn't human, Roger?" She asked as she gave the Doctor a predatory glance. The Doctor let out a surprised yelp when her hands grew a little too curious. She smirked, "Feels human to me."

"Don't start, Les," Trev snapped as he cuffed the Doctor's hands behind his back. "Does 'It' have any weapons?"

"Nothing…" she said as she slid her hands into the pockets of the Doctor's trousers, lingering a little too long for his comfort. "But…" she started to pull several things out of his pocket: A clockwork mouse, a badminton racquet, a box of facial tissue, a Satsuma…

"Oh! I was wondering where that went to. Probably foul by now…" the Doctor muttered.

"What is all this rubbish?" Les asked, "And how the hell does it fit in there?"

"Ahh, that's my secret," The Doctor replied. "By the way, you're making a mistake treating me like some illegal alien," he paused, "Well, I guess I am… but… still. A big mistake. Seriously, if I was making a mistake this big, I'd hide my head in shame-"

"Shut it!" Trev growled, offering the Doctor another hard shove against the unyielding surface of the wall. "We'll bring It to base. Let the Commander take a look at it when she comes in. Toss it to the lab boys first, then lock It in the basement 'till we get further orders."

Without another word, Trev roughly shoved the Doctor into a waiting Hummer.

* * *

When the Doctor was thrown into a glass cell after a barrage of tests in the lab, he was more impressed by the alien in the cell next to his, than he was chagrined about his circumstances.

"Weevils! You have a weevil in here! I love weevils. Well, maybe not love. Like. Well… tolerate," he commented as he crouched down to see his neighbour through the glass between them. "Hello!" It growled and hissed in response. The Doctor quickly stepped away. "Not the friendly sort, weevils."

"You know what that is?" Roger asked with interest.

"Of course. I know a lot of things," the Doctor straightened his back with pride, happy to note he was a few inches taller than Trev.

"You're slick, you," Trev accused, unimpressed. "Trying to weasel your way out!"

"But if he knows, he could be useful with the folks in First Contact, or on the Welcoming Committee." Roger pointed out.

"Are you implying It work with us? Are you daft?" Trev snapped. "No matter what that thing claims to know, it's still an alien. Plain and simple."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow, "A bit Xenophobic are we?"

"Shut up, you!" Trev hissed. "When the Commander gets here, she'll take care of that mouth! See that thing?" he indicated the Doctor's neighbour.

"The Weevil, yes. What about it?" the Doctor asked.

"She's the one who caught it. Brought it in. On her own! Was out for a walk one night before the curfew was instilled, saw it attack some poor bloke. Had her stunner and sod all else."

"You're fond of your Commander," The Doctor noticed a hint of jealousy creeping into his voice but couldn't stop it. "She wouldn't happen to be a rather pretty blonde?"

Les scoffed, "Of course. Blonde and bouncy. He's had it bad for her since the first time he saw her. Think he'd get over it by now."

"Why the hell are you talking to it?" Trev demanded of Les angrily.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow as he turned his attention to the man before him, "Can't imagine why your commander hasn't taken a fancy to you, Trev, being so pleasant and all. Maybe it's the girl-hair…"

Trev glared at the Doctor, a hand unconsciously brushing his dark, shoulder-length hair. "Bloody Martian fancies Itself a comedian, eh?"

"I'm not from Mars," the Doctor sighed.

"What?" Trev seemed confused.

"Martians are from Mars. I'm not from Mars. You took enough tests, poking and prodding at me. Thought you would have noticed that," he muttered as he rubbed at his sore arms.

"Be lucky we didn't use the anal probe!" Trev sneered.

"Well now! That would have been rude!" The Doctor replied.

Trev was about to respond, but a call on his communicator distracted him. He tapped a button on the device attached to his ear and turned away from the group.

After a few minutes, Trev turned back to the others. "Commander's back" He replied excitedly. "Told her to come down. She'll set the bugger straight! If not, then I will." He stepped closer to the glass. "Been learning how to interrogate aliens who don't like to talk. Could show you some of my techniques later."

A voice interrupted the conversation. "This better be good, Trev. I'm missing a friend and I've got to make my report about the Dimension Cannon. I don't have time to waste."

Rose… the Doctor couldn't help but smile as Trev's commander entered the room.

"It's good to see you home, Rose," Trev began as he stepped closer to her. "Was the mission successful?"

"Hello," the Doctor interrupted Trev's attempt at welcoming Rose back. He waved at her, then took in her uniform - black tank top, black form-fitting fatigues, black boots, and a small weapon at her side.

He was finding it incredibly attractive.

Oh… oh my…

Was this a sign of human hormones? Even after all the time they had spent together on the Tardis, he had never had such thoughts of Rose flitting around in his head.

"How many times have you told ME not to wander off?" She scolded, immediately startling the Doctor out of his thoughts.

He quickly came up with the answer, "One-hundred, seventy-nine. Well, one-hundred, eighty, actually – but you had already wandered off so you didn't hear me."

Trev spun on the Doctor, seething. "How do you know each other?"

The Doctor continued grinning at the blonde before him, which only incensed Trev more.

"I'll kill you, Martian!" He snapped, whipping out the gun at his side, "This shoots through glass, you know!"

"Ease up, Trev!" Rose snapped, eyes hard and cold as they focused on the trigger-happy man a few feet away.

"Rose…" Trev protested.

"Put the gun away, Lt. Jordan! S'alright. He's The Doctor." Rose motioned her hand towards the firearm her young employee was pointing at the Doctor.

This gave Trev pause. "YOUR Doctor?"

"The same, yes."

"But… he's not human!"

"That a problem?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. She then turned her attention to the Doctor. "We need to talk."

Trev let out triumphant laugh, as if he expected her to torture The Doctor the moment she was alone with him.

Rose glanced at the three beside her. Trev immediately stopped laughing, and the other two quickly got the hint.

Once the three were gone, the tough-girl façade disappeared. She was once more the Rose Tyler the Doctor knew and lo-

"Are you daft?" she snapped, interrupting his affectionate thought. "Should have told us you were going for a walk. Could have warned you about the patrols!" Rose went to the control panel on the side of the cell and keyed in a code, causing the door to slide open.

She ran inside and grabbed the Doctor by the lapels of his coat. For a moment, he thought she was going to kiss him again.

No such luck.

"And you called ME jeopardy friendly! Haven't I lost you enough times already?"

"Rose…"

"You're only human now!" Her voice grew softer, "Anything could have happened to you!"

"I'm sorry," he answered gently as he slid his arms around her.

"Don't do that again," she muttered into his shoulder, returning the embrace.

"Promise."

"Rose!" A shout from Rose's earpiece startled both of them, causing the two to jump apart.

Rose lifted a hand to her ear and pressed the button to respond. "Here, Control. What is it?"

"The CCTV is out in the visitor's cell. Is everything okay down there?"

"Yeah, we're fine. I'm letting him out," she answered.

Exhaling in frustration, she stepped away from the Doctor and reached for his hand. He took it gladly and she led him out of the cell, turning the CCTV back on quickly.

"Bastard still looks like he's in one piece," Trev's disembodied voice spoke into her headset.

She glanced back at the Doctor and saw him grow angry at Trev's attitude. "And so he'll remain," Rose replied sternly, smoothing her thumb over the Doctor's knuckles to calm him. "Saved the Universes and all. Should give him some credit for that."

"You neglected to mention your big hero was a bloody alien!" Trev hissed, the contempt evident in his voice.

"Commander, are you returning to Control?" Roger asked over the comm, interrupting Trev's ranting. "Sensors are picking up rift activity. Need to head out and clean up the mess."

Rose took a deep breath. It never ended. "Be there in a bit," she clicked off the microphone and turned to the Doctor.

"Pete and I were hoping to keep the alien part a secret. Guess that's out now."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a card. "Visitor's pass. I was gonna give it to you this morning but you were gone. This lets you to roam about when I'm not around. Nobody should give you a hard time. Might be curious though. Want to ask questions."

"I don't have a problem talking… or talking without saying anything," he winked.

Rose nodded, then took a deep breath as she nervously posed a question. "We were wonderin' if you wanted to work with us. Here, I mean."

He raised an eyebrow. "Work for Torchwood?"

"S'not the same as it was back there. Pete's made sure of that," she explained quickly.

The Doctor thought about it for a few seconds, which really seemed much longer in his mind as he went through a few thousand different possibilities in the blink of an eye. "Martha once told me it's better to work from the inside…"

Rose nudged him with her elbow. "Will help you towards gettin' a mortgage..." She grinned up at him, her pink tongue peeking between her teeth in a very Rose-like gesture.

He groaned in response, "Might want to get an identity first. I suppose I could use the psychic paper for that though."

"Psychic paper?" Rose asked.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the leather case, flipping it open. "I have one of these in every suit. Never know when I might need it." He then furrowed his brow, "I'm probably going to need a bank account, oh—and a car? Can I have a car? I miss having a car… wait… might need a license if I want a car. And probably a passport if we visit outside the country… and-"

"Dad's working on it – without the psychic paper," Rose interrupted. "What do you think of Doctor John Smith?"

"Doctor John Smith?" He happily took the visitor's pass. "Rose Tyler, you are brilliant! Did I ever tell you that?"

She smiled shyly, "Once or twice."

"I'm sure I'll say it several more times." He gave her a quick kiss on the head and bolted out of the basement, eager to explore his new place of work.

Rose couldn't help but wonder what Torchwood had just gotten itself into.


	2. Episode 2

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 2

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

Rose sighed as she washed Slitheen out of her hair after a rather messy Torchwood mission. She heard another shower begin a few stalls away in the unusually quiet change room and realized it was Les. Rose's opinion of the woman - a capable soldier - had gone down a few notches since she had begun hitting on the Doctor.

Rose wasn't quite sure how many Slitheen there were in this universe, but she hoped there wouldn't be any more. She was getting rather sick of dealing with them.

Truth be told, she wanted a holiday. Time to come to terms with everything that had happened in the last few days. She wanted to talk to the Doctor, find out more about the Time Lord/Human Metacrisis. See how he was enjoying his visit to Torchwood the past week.

Five years ago – the worst day of her life - she had poured her heart out to a time travelling alien on a beach. He had faded away seconds later, never finishing what it was he had intended to say.

… and now, this new Doctor had finished it _for_ him. Even after everything they had gone through, the Doctor – the proper Doctor – refused to say it.

She had wanted to shout at him, _yes, damn it! Yes, it bloody well needs saying!_

Rose rested her forehead against the cool tile of the shower wall, letting the hot water pour over her. _How different is this one­? _She wondered._ And can I love him just as much? _

She turned off the water and stepped out, wrapping herself in a towel before heading over to her locker and opening it. Her ear piece was sitting on the shelf, flashing a message.

Rose quickly dried off and changed into a pair of Torchwood issue sweats before picking the message up: Roger had the results from the tests they had taken on the Doctor.

Rose seethed. The very thought of them poking and prodding at him... but there was nothing to be done for it now. Whatever the results were, she would have to explain it all to the others.

Easier said than done.

* * *

An hour later, Torchwood Director Pete Tyler stood at the front of the very full debriefing room, his eyes scanning over the thirty-odd compliment before him.

"I've called this meeting because Squad A found a visitor earlier this week." A murmur of excitement rose up from the crowd. "I've sure you've met him. He's been wandering around Torchwood the last few days."

There was a mutter of acknowledgment.

"I'm sure he's talked to many of you, and I'm sure you've asked him questions. As you've probably realized, he's an ally. The Doctor is a bit of a legend, in fact."

A hearty cheer of agreement rose up from one Jake Simmonds . Rose offered him a quick smiled, relieved that _someone_ in Torchwood's employ was familiar with the Time Lord.

Pete continued, "Roger can fill you in on the details, but understand that the threat level is zero, and if anyone here wishes the Doctor any harm, they will have to answer to me."

Pete then nodded towards Roger, who stood up and passed a pile of paper around the room. He briefly explained the circumstances surrounding the capture and the following tests that were performed.

"As you can tell from these tests," Roger began, "The Doctor is unlike anything we have ever seen. Earlier scans found a body temperature cool to the touch, and a brain that functions at a nearly impossible speed along with a capacity for telepathy."

Roger glanced at Rose and she stood up.

Rose took a deep breath and faced the room. "The Doctor is a Time Lord," she offered. There was no need to explain the meta-crisis. "He's from the planet Gallifrey and he'll be going by the moniker John Smithto save any confusion with our many other wonderful doctors."

"Very human name," Trev muttered. "S'there a reason he won't tell us his REAL name?"

"Rose," Roger began, ignoring Trev's comment. "Since you know more about him - are there other Time Lords?"

"Not _here_, no." Rose answered. _There IS one more… wandering around out there… _she swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Thank God for that," Trev replied.

Rose glared at him, "And how would you feel if you were the only human left?" He opened his mouth to respond, then closed it. "Not so funny, is it?"

Trev glanced away, suitably humbled.

"The Doctor deserves our respect," Rose insisted as she turned back to the rest of the group. "He helped us stop the Cybermen some years back, and stopped the darkness from destroying us all." There was a mutter of awe from the Torchwood employees. Rose continued, "The Doctor has been asked to join us. His knowledge and experience will be an incredible asset."

"He also knows about other aliens and claims to speak over five billion languages," Roger informed the others. "I, for one, am looking forward to working with him."

The murmur of agreement filled the room.

"Just because he looks human, doesn't mean we should become best mates!" Trev protested. There was a split between agreement and disagreement at that.

Rose released a frustrated breath. She wanted the Doctor to be accepted. With Trev stirring up trouble, though, that was going to be harder than she thought.

"I'll claim personal responsibility for him," she announced. This received a murmur of surprise. Rose took in the faces of her peers, "_I'm _supposed to be the expert on aliens, yeah? I don't even know a _fraction_ of what the Doctor knows. He's a walking encyclopaedia of all things alien."

Murmurs of interest filled the room. No doubt many people would have a lot of questions for the Time Lord.

"All right then," Pete stood up once more. "Any concerns you want to bring to my attention can be done in my office privately." There were murmurs but no distinct protests. "Dismissed."

* * *

The Doctor frowned as he took in his new office: white walls, faded grey carpet and a pull-out couch off to the side – the only furniture aside from his desk, chair and computer. The brass plaque on the door read '_Doctor John Smith – Head of Extraterrestrial Biology and Technology_'.

He dug his hands into the pockets of his jeans and found himself missing his suit. He wasn't used to the feel of denim – not in _this_ body, anyway – but Rose had warned him that some lab subjects were known to excrete substances that would otherwise stain his _one_ suit (and it would end up getting horribly ratty in the meantime), thus she had taken him shopping.

The Doctor's new wardrobe now consisted of jeans and jumpers (mostly blue. He liked blue. Odd that. There was a time this body preferred brown.).

Rose insisted it was a more practical wardrobe, easier to clean, and replaceable. And soon, he had been informed, his wardrobe would also include a Torchwood uniform to wear in the field.

He wasn't quite sure how he felt about that.

Even with the new wardrobe, however, the Doctor still insisted on wearing the blue suit jacket. '_Pockets are bigger on the inside_', he had explained to Rose before promising to remove it prior to examining any specimens.

He shuddered as he recalled his own experience as a _specimen_ little more than two weeks ago. As if it wasn't repulsive enough that human DNA now polluted his perfect Time Lord genetics. He had been treated like a freak of nature not only by the humans, but by his other self as well.

The Doctor was surprised at the bitterness he felt. Time Lords had always had superiority complexes, and as much as he liked to pretend otherwise, the Doctor knew that he was no different. This new body was _inferior_. One of the_ stupid apes_. It was difficult coming to terms with that.

"Well… this is homey," the Doctor finally spoke, trying to change that train of thought.

"Really?" Rose asked as she leaned back against his desk.

"No. Sorry. I was being sarcastic. It's actually very… sterile."

"It's part of the lab," she glanced out the window that overlooked the lab in question. "Can't expect it to be too fancy. But it's all yours, _Doctor Smith_," she grinned. "And you even have a team all your own. That lady beside the computer out there," she pointed to a dark haired woman working tirelessly at her terminal. "She's your personal assistant. Right hand woman, so to speak. Toshiko Sato. She's excellent with technology."

She then turned back to him and raised an eyebrow, "We've got a lot of that here – technology, that is. Various alien bits and bobs in the vaults. Might be enough to make a sonic screwdriver…"

He nodded, deep in thought. "I could use parts of that dimension cannon you built."

"What do you mean?" she asked, brow furrowed.

He met her eyes, "We have to dismantle it, Rose. Surely you understand that?"

"But we worked so long on it. We might need it again!" She protested.

"It served its purpose. It's dangerous to the stability of the walls between universes," the Doctor pointed out. He refused to show her the conflicting emotions stirring within him at her reluctance to dismantle the project. He couldn't help but think she was still trying to find a way to get back to _Him_.

The Doctor never thought he would be jealous of _himself_.

The beep from Rose's communicator interrupted his dark thoughts.

She lifted her hand to the device on her ear and spoke. "Tyler here."

"Computer detecting rift activity. Street cameras found three hostiles," Control reported.

The Doctor immediately pushed the feelings of rejection from his mind and bounced on the balls of his feet, eager to make himself useful

Rose rolled her eyes and smiled at him. "We're on our way, Control."

Rose headed up and the Doctor followed, taking a brief moment to go up to Toshiko, "Hello, I'm Doctor Smith," he shook her hand vigorously. "Nice to meet you. I don't suppose you could get me one of those portable dimension jumpers you lot put together, can you? Thanks!"

He then raced down the hall to catch up to Rose, leaving Tosh staring blankly at where he had been.

* * *

The Doctor slid on his newly acquired glasses and watched the camera footage over Rose's shoulder. With some tweaking, the grainy visual cleared up enough to make out three ancient looking women hovering over the prone body of a man, sucking his energy away with the touch of their hands.

"Carrionites," The Doctor declared.

"What are those?" Trev asked.

"The three witches. The three fates. The weird sisters. Always travel in threes." He explained. "From the Fourteen Stars of the Rexel Planetary Configuration."

"Where's that?" Rose asked.

"Second star to the right, and straight on 'till morning," the Doctor winked. Rose raised an eyebrow. He grew serious once more. "Never been there. Not quite sure the exact coordinates."

"Anyway," he brushed that aside. "Carrionites get their power from words. Ran into them a little while back. Had to save Shakespeare. Not a bad bloke, if you overlook the fact he's a plagiarist. Well… technically, he was plagiarizing himself. Stealing all my scholarly quotes…" he muttered.

"And how, exactly, did you meet Shakespeare?" Trev interrupted.

The Doctor simply smirked. "Older than I look."

"Well, you look very _good_, Smith," Les replied slyly, making no secret of admiring his form fitting blue jeans.

The Doctor stared at the brunette, suddenly feeling very flushed. A sharp jab from Rose's elbow snapped him out of it. "Oi!"

"Carrionites?" Rose asked with a frown of disapproval.

"What about them?"

"How do we defeat them?"

"Oh!" The Doctor shivered at the ice in her voice. "Defeat… yes. Well…" he took a deep breath and leaned forward, his lips a little too close to her ear, voice low. "_Doubt thou the stars are fire; Doubt that the sun doth move; Doubt truth to be a liar; But never doubt I love._"

Rose turned her head to meet his eyes, realizing that the Doctor was doing far more than just quoting an old play. She suddenly remembered the kiss on the beach… and found herself missing it.

"I don't plan on getting close enough to whisper sweet nothings in their ear!" Trev interrupted, his disapproval at the lack of space between the Doctor and Rose clear.

The Doctor glanced at him. "My point is: the Carrionites steal power from words, but words can steal the power right back. Writers and poets are their victims as well as their destroyers. The wordsmiths just have to think fast when confronted."

"Right. Well then, we'll just round up JK Rowling and let her have a go," Trev muttered.

The Doctor's eyes lit up, "You have JK in this world too?"

"Yeah," Rose replied, "Ronald Weasley: Boy Wizard. Fights Voldemort with his best friend, Harry Potter."

The Doctor looked crestfallen, "Well, things were bound to be a _bit_ different, I suppose."

Rose turned around to face him, but he didn't step back. She didn't mind. "So. Words, yeah?" She asked. "Do they have to be published, or said by some professional writers or poets?"

"Hmmm…" the Doctor leaned forward, a hand on either side of Rose. "Professional? No. Probably not. Well… maybe semi professional. Well… decent." He furrowed his brow. "Someone who can grasp regular grammar concepts, at least."

"Oi, Alien!" Trev grabbed the Doctor's shoulder and yanked him away from the blonde. "Ever hear of personal space?"

"Oi, Earthling! Ever hear of minding your own business?" The Doctor replied, grimacing as he realized he still had a touch of Donna's speech patterns. "Sorry, Rose. Where were we?"

"Commander Tyler to you!" Trev snapped angrily.

"Blimey, you're getting on my nerves," the Doctor muttered under his breath.

"It's a matter of respect," Trev insisted.

"Well, if it's a matter of respect," the Doctor began, "I much prefer _Dame Rose of the Powell Estates._"

Rose met his eyes and tried to fight the smile threatening to escape. She had a reputation at Torchwood for being all business, after all

Trev looked between the two of them, quite aware he had missed something. "I think Smith should return to his office now, don't you?" he asked sharply.

Rose glanced towards Roger, "Any more on that disc we need to see?" Roger shook his head.

"Come then." Rose motioned for the Doctor to follow her, "Tell me everything you know about the Carrionites."

"I'll go with you," Trev stepped in, eyeing the Doctor suspiciously.

"I'll debrief the team later, _Lieutenant_," Rose replied, Trev's attitude forcing her to pull rank.

Her glare quickly silenced any protests he would have made and he immediately snapped to attention. "Yes, ma'am."

The Doctor released a quiet snicker.

Rose turned on him, "Behave yourself, Doctor Smith," she commanded.

The Doctor mirrored Trev's obedience. "Yes, ma'am…"

"And stop taunting him," Rose murmured under her breath as she tugged the Doctor's arm and led him back to his office.

* * *

Rose, Trev, Les, Roger, and the Doctor stood beneath the glowing vortex above them as the _Shakespeare in the Park_ festival came to a grinding halt amongst screaming patrons running every which way.

A spiral of black robed creatures spilled out from the vortex, snatching people from the crowd left, right, and centre.

Similar events were happening elsewhere in the city, and Rose had sent out three more field squads to take care of it.

Rose took a deep breath and turned her attention to the invaders, her voice cracking as words tore from her throat. "May your darkness curse this land no more. May you disappear out the glowing door!" she stopped, waited. She could think of no more.

"May your big fat arses turn to ash, may your bodies know nothing but… erm… beans and mash…" Trev offered.

"And thus we command you all take leave. We need this world to … live and breathe." Les added.

"Go in peace and no more harm us! I say to thee…" Roger stopped a moment and glanced at the Doctor.

The Doctor grinned and offered the last word, "Expelliarmus!"

With a final screech, the Carrionites disappeared into their own vortex, the swirling mass closing behind them.

"Ahh, that Ronald Weasley," Les smiled.

Reports quickly came in from the other field teams. The mission was a success.

* * *

Back at the lab, The Doctor saw Tosh had made good on her task. A dimension jumper sat on his desk waiting for him.

Now it was time to work on that sonic screwdriver…


	3. Episode 3

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 3

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

Rose stepped into the Doctor's office, wanting to tell him about the latest treaty with the Argolin, a group that planned to erect a leisure park in a nearby town, only to find him otherwise occupied by the guest sitting on the edge of his desk.

"Les?" she began suspiciously.

"Rose!" Les smiled predatorily. "Thought I'd get to know our newest employee a little better," she turned her attention back to the Doctor. "Now, Doctor Smith… we were talking biology?" She leaned in closer to the Time Lord, making good use of her low-cut tank top.

Rose crossed her arms, eyes narrowed coolly. Les rarely wore makeup or let her hair down. Today, she had gone to the trouble of doing both.

"If you don't mind," Rose started. "The Doctor and I have some business to discuss. Very official. Top secret…"

"Planning a private debriefing?" Les asked as she slinked off the desk, the innuendo clear.

Rose kept her composure, raising an eyebrow. "Better than throwing my dossiers in his face."

The Doctor watched the two women before him and quickly stifled a snicker.

"Something funny, Doctor?" Rose turned on him.

"Oh no…" the Doctor replied. "Please, continue." He slid on his glasses and pretended to busy himself with his computer.

"If you don't mind, Les?" Rose asked, indicating the door.

"I _do_ mind, actually. We were having a conversation." Les replied.

"Business comes first," Rose pointed out.

Les took a deep breath, keeping her temper in check. "I'll visit tomorrow," she offered as she glanced back at the Doctor. "We can finish our conversation then." She turned back to Rose, her expression icy as she pushed past the blonde and headed out.

Rose watched Les leave, then all but slammed the door behind her. "She shouldn't be disturbing you."

"I'm sorry, but… that little interaction was almost as amusing as finding out Pete had a dog named Rose. Not quite as amusing as finding out you STILL have that dog, mind…"

Rose ignored that and sat on the Doctor's desk, "So - what were you and Les talking about?"

"Gallifreyan physiology. More specifically, mating." He furrowed his brow, "Though she seemed far more interested in my compatibility with _humans_."

Rose had nothing to say to that and quickly changed the subject. "Dad said you had something to show me?"

"Oh yes!" The Doctor jumped up and grabbed a handful of printouts from the floor. He gently shooed Rose off the desk, covering it instead with his work. He then sat back down and yanked a startled Rose onto his lap, positioning her in the direction of his readouts.

"I didn't realize you had a rift here. Just like the other Universe."

"Yeah," Rose replied. "Things come through from other galaxies way out. It's a bit random, but a lot of them are similar to the things in the other universe."

"Well, there's only a hair's difference between the two, to be honest. A right turn here is a left turn there. That kind of thing."

Rose offered a small smile, "Like Donna turning the wrong way…"

The Doctor grew silent at the mention of his friend. He was quite sure he knew what had happened to her...

"Doctor?" Rose called, concerned at his sudden silence.

"What? Sorry. Anyway," he quickly got back on track, "I was checking the rift activity from the day I arrived until now. Found something interesting. Gave me an idea." The Doctor rested a hand on her hip as she leaned forward to see what had caught his attention.

"Well _this_," he pointed to a row of little dots in the printout, "is about ten minutes before the Carronites came through."

Rose pointed to a row of large spikes, "And this is when they DID come through." He nodded. "So… could these little dots be connected to rift activity? Maybe indicate when the rift is going to be active?" she asked excitedly.

"They could, and they do," The Doctor replied as he slid his arm around her waist. "I love it when you're being brilliant." She turned her head to meet his eyes. His voice grew softer, "I really, really love it…"

She quickly brought her attention back to the printouts, "So, what's your idea?" She heard the Doctor release a sigh before pushing to his feet, causing her to slide off his lap.

She suddenly felt incredibly guilty.

"Well," the Doctor began, his voice was far louder than necessary. "I could build a device to predict rift activity – an alarm of sorts - if I had the proper equipment. Like say… ooooh, a sonic screwdriver."

The Doctor then glanced over to the man opening the door and inviting himself into the office. Rose then realized the Doctor had known someone was coming.

"Hello, Trev. Nice to see you again." The Doctor paused, "No, sorry. That's a lie. Might want to knock before you enter a person's office. Give a bloke some warning, you know."

Trev simply glared, "Les thought you were taking a little too long in here."

"It's getting late, Trev." Rose replied. "We still have some work to finish up." She gestured to the readouts. "We'll brief everyone on it tomorrow."

Trev glanced between the Doctor and Rose, then frowned. "Fine. If you need me, you can reach me on my mobile." His expression then softened. "You should head home as well, Rose."

Rose nodded, and Trev headed out.

"Now where were we?" she asked the Doctor once they were alone again.

He sat back down and glanced up at her hesitantly. She took her spot on his lap again and felt his body relax a little as he continued with his theories.

It wasn't long after that he found her blonde head asleep against his shoulder.

* * *

Rose woke with a jump. She took in the hazy light coming through the window. _I'm at Torchwood…_ she realized, releasing a shaky breath. _And I'm on a bed…_

"Rose?" A voice spoke softly as the mattress beneath her moved. She froze as she felt a solid body pressed against her back.

_On the pull-out… with the Doctor._

"I'm sorry," she offered as she rolled over to get a better look at him. "I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"Started getting tired myself. Slept for a few hours. Still don't need as much as you." He patted the mattress. "Good idea to have one of these in here. Late nights and all."

"Yeah, it's sort of required in a lot of the offices. Don't want our employees driving home when they're working into the wee hours of the night," Rose quickly realized she was babbling and grew silent.

The Doctor lifted his head to study her face. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing…" she lied.

"Rose?"

She took a shuddering breath. "Do you resent it? All this?" she indicated the room. "Being stuck here?"

"Stuck with you? That's not so bad," he said, echoing a sentiment she had shared some time ago. He released a breath when he realized she wouldn't take such an easy answer. "Maybe a little," he admitted. "I'm used to being on the go. Travelling. It's fine though, really."

Rose was startled when he slid his arms around her and pressed his face against her neck. "Being with you is very easy to get used to…" he breathed in deeply. "And you smell nice too. Very… very nice…"

She didn't know how to respond. This wasn't typical 'Doctor' behaviour. Yes, he had rather enjoyed friendly hugging during their adventures, but this… this was far more than friendly.

Rose wasn't sure whether she should enjoy it or dread it.

The Doctor's head suddenly shot up, "Do you know there's a planet where the inhabitants can kill you with their smell?" He blurted out, easing her conflicted emotions. She wondered if he had somehow sensed her discomfort.

"_Not_ human," the Doctor continued, "Nothing human smells like that. I call it the Planet of Eternal Stench. The official name is Putrescence. What a name, that!"

"Doctor?"

"What?" he asked.

Rose suddenly yanked his glasses out of his jacket pocket slid them on her face. "Do you really need these?"

"Yes! I'm an old man," he answered. "Now give them here."

"No." She protested with a smirk, feeling at ease once again.

"Yes!" he insisted as he reached for the specs.

Rose wouldn't relinquish them so easily. She grabbed his wrist and held his grasping hand away. "I think they look good on me, don't you think?" She replied, and the moment she poked that tongue out of the corner of her mouth, the Doctor's human hormones kicked in.

_Oh now this… this is just wizard! _He thought bitterly. It wasn't the first time he had felt a rush of lust in this new body for one Rose Tyler, but he would be damned if he'd let her notice while she was still so uncertain about her feelings.

He quickly pulled his wrist out of her grip and tugged the glasses off her face, sliding them on his own. "Still have my Time Lord reflexes," he replied smugly, "Besides, wearing someone else's prescription is bad for your eyes."

Rose tried to steal them back, but he grabbed her hand and pinned it against the mattress.

"Get off her!" A voice boomed angrily throughout the room, causing both Rose and the Doctor to jump apart.

They quickly sat up on the pullout, putting as much space between them as possible.

Trev stood in the doorway, weapon at the ready. "What the hell were you trying to do, alien? And why the hell is she still here? What happened after I left?!"

"What are you…?" The Doctor stopped, realizing how things must look: Rose, still in the same clothes she was wearing the night before, him hovering over her. "OH! You think we… that I was… we were… oh NO. No no no!" the Doctor sputtered.

Rose couldn't help but laugh, "Like I would have let you! I've been studying Taekwondo, you know. Could've hurt you quite a lot."

"I'm tougher than I look!" The Doctor challenged.

"Is that so? C'mere then!" She got to her knees. "Let's have at it!"

"Oi, Rose Tyler! You be careful who you say those things to when you're rolling around on a bed!" The Doctor admonished.

"Enough already!" Trev shouted, his weapon immediately trained on the Doctor. The Doctor sobered and put his hands up. Trev sneered, "The way you two act, you'd think you're lovers or something."

"No, we're definitely not that," the Doctor replied, then offered a small sniff. "But I think she fancies me."

Trev turned on Rose. "Is that true?" He demanded, the disgust clear.

"I don't care for your tone, Lieutenant," Rose snapped back. "If you have an issue with our newest employee, then take it up with the Director!"

Trev swore under his breath and quickly headed out of the office.

* * *

"Sir? May I have a word?" Trev asked as he pushed the door to Director Tyler's office open.

"Come in," Pete offered a chair. "What's on your mind?"

"Your daughter, Sir," Trev began as he sat down. "I think she's been brainwashed by the alien."

"You mean The Doctor? The Doctor who saved every universe in existence? _That_ alien?" Pete replied with a raised eyebrow.

Trev shifted uncomfortably, "I understand the good he's done, sir, but really - you should see her with him. Something's wrong with her. She's never acted like this before. Roger said he was telepathic-"

"She's not brainwashed, Trev," Pete interrupted. "And I suggest you don't invite confrontation. She won't thank you for sticking your nose in her business. Now if you'll excuse me…" he indicated the papers on his desk.

Trev took that as a distinct dismissal.

Disappointed, he pushed to his feet and headed out.

* * *

"So how's the commander's little pet alien?" Trev asked as he spied the Doctor in line at the Torchwood cafeteria.

The Doctor smirked, "Fine. How's the commander's little pet brute?"

Trev let out a sarcastic laugh, "Oh, you're witty, you."

"Thank you," he answered as he brought his tray to a nearby table. Trev followed. The Doctor sat down and began to eat his chips, trying to ignore the other man's hovering presence.

Trev narrowed his eyes, "What have you done to Rose? What happened to the woman I know? The one who _fought_ the aliens instead of befriending them?"

"You don't know her very well, do you, Trev?" The Doctor asked.

"I've known her for two years!" He insisted. "I know what kind of woman she is."

"Apparently you don't," the Doctor replied. "Knowing someone and really _knowing_ someone are two different things. Have you ever asked her about her past? At any time?"

"I know she's not from this universe, despite what the official records claim."

"Is that the extent of your Rose Tyler knowledge?" The Doctor asked as he swallowed another chip, "_I_ know a fair bit more about her than that."

Trev snorted at that, "Did you know we dated?"

The Doctor felt an uncharacteristic rush of jealousy but kept his composure. "I have a feeling it didn't last very long, being as you're not together right now. And for the record… _we_ live together."

"Enough!" Rose snapped as she came up to the table.

The Doctor turned to see the blonde glaring at him in disapproval, and his arrogance immediately faded away.

"I'll talk to you when we get home!" Rose then spun angrily on her heel and walked out.

Trev snickered under his breath, "Someone's in trouble…"

"Oh shut up!" The Doctor huffed, then quickly headed out after Rose.


	4. Episode 4

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 4

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

The Doctor sat down with his lunch in the Torchwood cafeteria and opened the book in his hand – _Torchwood: A History_.

He skimmed through the one-thousand page book, finishing it at the same time as he finished his sandwich. The biggest difference between _this _Torchwood and the one in the other universe was very little – save for the fact _he_ hadn't been involved.

As it was, Queen Victoria had created Pete's Torchwood to investigate paranormal activity after a run-in with unexplained phenomena upon a visit to the Torchwood Estate.

_Werewolf…_ the Doctor thought with some humour. _Not that Victoria would ever admit it._

The Doctor suddenly felt someone's eyes on him and turned to see Trev sitting a few feet away, his own lunch tray untouched.

With a sigh, the Doctor pushed to his feet and made himself comfortable on the chair beside Trev.

"What?" Trev sneered.

"Nothing," the Doctor shrugged. "You just looked like you wanted to talk to me."

"I don't."

"Very well," the Doctor replied. "Then I'll talk to _you_."

"About what?" Trev demanded.

"About you pulling a gun on me in my office the other day."

Trev scoffed at that.

"You realize the only reason you're still on active duty is because Rose and I decided not to inform Pete of that little incident, yes?"

Trev said nothing, refusing to look at the Doctor.

"She suggested I speak to you directly instead, since you've become a problem to me and, well… Rose knows I'm quite adept at dealing with _problems_."

Trev remained unimpressed.

The Doctor continued, "Now I'm not going to ask you why, but I imagine you take issue with anything distinctly _not_ human." He leaned forward and met Trev's eyes, his tone growing dark, "No second chances, Trev. You pull a gun on me again, and I _will_ take it from you."

Trev snorted at that, "You think you could beat me in a fight?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow, "I don't have to touch you to hurt you."

Trev noticeably paled at that.

"I have faced all manner of monsters, Lieutanant Jordan. But an angry twenty-five year old male competing for the affections of a lovely twenty-five year old female? That's a new one." He paused, "Mind you, I _did_ face a truckload of paranoid tourists some time back. Don't care to repeat that adventure any time soon. Planet called Midnight. Ever hear of it? Made of diamonds, you know. Quite lovely in the moonlight."

"You're babbling," Trev pointed out.

"Yes. I do that a lot," the Doctor agreed. "Especially when I want to distract someone."

Trev frowned, "Distract them from what?"

"Ooooh, you know… from the fact I just sabotaged their gun, for example?"

Trev's eyes went wide. He worriedly pulled the weapon from his side and began to inspect it.

He couldn't even take off the safety.

"I suppose you'll just have to borrow one from the weapons locker for the next little while," The Doctor continued nonchalantly. "Signing it out in the morning, handing it back in at night. Recording each and every time you draw it out or fire it off, and for what reasons you did so." He shrugged. "It will give you some time to think about things. Until you can get a new gun issued to you, at least."

The Doctor leaned calmly back in his chair, "'course, you could always tell Pete it was MY fault for jamming your weapon to begin with, but then I would have to explain to him WHY I did it, and then he'd find out all about that business in my office and… well, really - I doubt you want the Director to know about your penchant for pulling weapons on co-workers now."

Trev muttered something rude under his breath.

"You kiss your mum with that mouth?" The Doctor asked, then pat Trev on the shoulder and stood up. "Have a nice day, Trev. Hopefully I won't see you later."

Without another word, the Doctor headed out.

* * *

"Did it work?" Rose asked as the Doctor followed her into the house for the night.

"It did," The Doctor answered. "Don't think he's too happy with me right now."

"He'll deal with it," Rose replied. "He can be a loose cannon, but he's one of our best soldiers. He's saved my life a few times."

"And I _haven't_?" The Doctor asked. The look of hurt on his face tore at her heart.

She reached out for his hand, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean…" She slid her arms around him. "You've saved my life in more ways than one."

The Doctor returned the embrace, his voice quiet. "Trev fancies you. Told me you dated."

Rose let out a harsh laugh. "Is that what he's calling it? We went out for dinner and a movie a few times. Never saw it as _dating_." She then looked up at the Doctor in surprise. "Were you jealous?"

"Time Lords don't get jealous."

Rose raised an eyebrow, not quite believing him.

The Doctor brushed a lock of hair off her face, his voice growing softer. "I still meant what I said on the beach."

Rose was quiet a moment, remembering the words he had whispered in her ear. The words she had waited so long to hear – from the wrong Doctor.

It was getting harder to remember they were two different people.

Rose pulled away from him, unable to meet his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

She headed out of the room in a silent rush.

* * *

The Doctor sat on the couch, head back against the pillows, eyes closed.

Rose had been in her bedroom for the past two hours, not saying a peep to anyone.

He was pushing her, he knew it. Thing is, he had never wanted something like this before. He was completely mystified as to how to woo one Rose Tyler. He was foolish to think it would be easy. That she would just run into his arms as if he were… _Him_.

He kept forgetting that he was the _other _one to her.

_But he's not you…_

The words struck at his one heart. No, he wasn't HIM. But that only made his feelings that much stronger.

The Doctor was startled when he suddenly felt a small warm thing crawling on his lap and wrapping arms around his neck. He opened his eyes to look at the blonde four-year-old hugging him.

"Hello," the Doctor forced a grin. "What's this now?"

"Hug," Tony replied. A man of few words, Tony was.

"Right. Well, much appreciated," the Doctor replied, returning the hug. Tony giggled and smiled in response. "Where's your sis?"

"With Mum," Tony answered, letting go of the Doctor, but remaining perched on his lap.

"And where's Nanny Deb?"

This pulled a wide mischievous grin from Tony. "I ran away from her!"

"Ooh, a man after my own heart," the Doctor replied. "Be careful, though," he advised. "Sometimes running away can lead to bigger problems later on. Take it from someone who knows."

"You ran away from Nanny Deb too?" Tony asked.

"I've run away from a lot of things," The Doctor sighed. "And it's always come back to bite me in the-" he stopped, remembering his audience. "… to muddle things up."

Tony nodded, but the Doctor knew the boy didn't quite understand. He was only four, after all.

"Tony?" A sing-song voice called as the sound of footsteps came down the stairs. "Where are you?"

"I believe you're being called, Master Tyler. Best go see her." He pat Tony on the back and the boy quickly jumped off the Doctor, running into the arms of the dark-haired bespectacled woman coming down the stairs.

Nanny Deb acknowledged the Doctor with a friendly wave before carrying the youngest Tyler up the stairs.

With a deep sigh, the Doctor vowed never to run away again.

* * *

"Hmm, no. Try these," Rose pointed to the black heels to the left of her mother's closet. Jackie and Pete had been invited to another black tie affair, and Rose had offered to help her mother prepare.

"Thanks, luv," Jackie replied as she sat on the bed beside Rose and switched her shoes. "So, how are things with you and your doctor?"

Rose glanced away, "S'not my Doctor, mum. My Doctor left me behind."

"Oh rubbish," Jackie replied as she tugged on her left shoe. "He left you a good part of himself, and just because he has human bits that doesn't mean he's any less your Doctor."

"But it DOES!" Rose protested. "He's different. He's all… affectionate. And open."

Jackie looked at her daughter, surprised. "And there's something wrong with that?"

"No! Of course not, but… it's not very doctor-ish."

"Pete wasn't very Pete-ish either, luv. You know how long it took us to accept each other? He wasn't my Pete and I wasn't his Jackie. Still, we made it work."

"But he's still not dad," Rose replied.

"Of course not, but he has the same qualities that I loved about your dad, even if he was… _different_." Jackie took her hand, "Look, Rose. I'm not saying you don't need time, but you dealt with his change once before – and that time it wasn't just his personality, but his whole body. This isn't nearly as big a change. He's still the Doctor. He still has all those qualities you love about him and all the memories the two of you shared - and the last thing he wants to do is keep you at arm's length like the _other_ one did."

"That's not fair, mum. He had his reasons."

"Reasons," she snorted. "He was afraid to drop his guard. 'Least _this_ Doctor doesn't have that problem."

Her mother was right, of course, but in her heart, Rose was still finding the situation difficult to accept.

Rose reached out to hug her mother, who gently pushed her away after a few moments. "Don't get all mushy now. You'll mess my hair."

Rose smiled and offered a few more makeup tips before heading out to leave her mother to her last minute fussing.

* * *

The Doctor sat in his room, putting the finishing touches on his new sonic screwdriver.

He had borrowed some _junk _alien debris from the vaults in addition to the portable dimension jumper. Over the last two weeks he had slowly, meticulously, built the device in his hand – with several improvements over the other one, such as dampeners and a temporary force field.

He jumped up excitedly, wanting to run into Rose's room and show her his great achievement.

Something caused him to stop, though. He assumed it was what humans called common sense. Rose was most likely sleeping and would be very unhappy with the interruption.

The Doctor felt his body calling him to sleep as well. He resented this new limitation. Before, he could go a few days without sleep, but now? He had to get in at least four hours every night.

With a sigh, the Doctor undressed and pulled on his pyjama bottoms.

He had spent the last few nights at Torchwood working on his beloved screwdriver and found the place was never completely quiet: He could hear the whir of computers, the muffle of others working through the night a few floors up, even the weevil in the basement beneath him.

And something even below that. Something he couldn't quite figure out. A whine or a rumble of some sort. Something in the infamous _Section 8_ he had heard about.

No matter. It was none of his business. He was here and now. In a house that was far too quiet for his liking.

It was hard enough dealing with the silence in his head after Gallifrey. The gentle hum of the TARDIS had always eased that lonely ache. _This_ Universe, however, denied him that.

He hated the silence.

With a soft sigh, the Doctor slid under the covers and tried to concentrate on the only thing he could - _Rose_.

His still-sensitive hearing picked up her soft breathing in the next room, mixed with a hint of a light snore. He wanted so desperately to be near her, it was almost a physical ache.

But that wasn't to be. Not right now, anyway.

Breathing slowly, he closed his eyes, and finally fell into sleep.

* * *

_Fire. The stench of death. Blood. Screams. The smell of fear. The world coming to an end. _

_Since the moment The Doctor had first looked into the untempered schism, he had known what his purpose was. And he had run from it. Run so very far away._

_But The Doctor couldn't run forever. _

_The Time War was infecting the rest of the universe. It was a tumour that had to be removed. _

_That was, after all, what a Doctor did…_

_Gallifrey was burning. The Citadel of the Time Lords fell to flames, and the silver forests became walls of fire. _

_The Doctor had done this. The Doctor had caused all this destruction. He had become the last of the Time Lords by his own hand._

_It had been the only way. _

* * *

"… DOCTOR!"

When the Doctor's eyes flew open, he grabbed the lovely blonde creature leaning over him and tug her down beside him, burying his face against her neck.

Rose's initial uneasiness was immediately replaced with concern. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"One moment," he replied, voice hoarse. He took a deep breath and held her tighter against him. "Rose… Rose… Rose…" he repeated her name like a mantra.

"S'okay, I'm here." she replied as she slid her fingers into his hair and gently massaged his scalp.

After a few moments, the Doctor finally raised his head and offered a small smile. "Hello…"

"Hello," she answered. "You okay?"

"Fine. Just had a bit of a nightmare."

"Have those a lot?"

He shrugged, "Always have. Sleep more now, so you were bound to catch me eventually."

"I heard you shouting when I was coming back from the loo."

He nodded, then closed his eyes and tilted his head towards her, "Can you do that thing with my hair again? It was very nice…"

Rose smiled and did as he requested. "Did I ever tell you, you have _really_ great hair?"

"Nope," he answered as he rested his forehead against her shoulder. "But now that I know, I'll let you do this any time you like."

Rose laughed, "You might regret that."

"Mmm…" he murmured sleepily, rather enjoying the scalp massage. "I'll never regret anything I do with you, Rose Tyler. Never ever."

Had the Doctor not been so relaxed, he would have noticed the dream had been viewed from the eyes of an outsider.

He also would have noticed the silent cry for help that had followed.

* * *

Rose slowly rolled over, eyes fluttering open. Someone was staring at her with soft brown eyes, messy hair, and a silly grin.

"Hello again."

"Hey," she smiled lazily in return. "This is getting to be a habit, yeah?"

"Don't mind. Rather like it, actually." He leaned over and placed a quick, chaste kiss on her lips.

Rose froze.

The Doctor quickly realized what he had done and backed away. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"S'okay," she interrupted as she pushed to a sit. "Just not used to you being all… expressive."

"Right. Of course. I'm _different_…" he hadn't meant to sound bitter, but it had come out regardless.

"That's not what I-"

"Rose?" a voice shouted from the foyer, interrupting the awkward moment. "Where are you?"

The Doctor jumped so high he nearly fell off the bed, muttering something Rose couldn't understand. No doubt the words were Gallifreyan in origin.

Rose could only stare at him, dishevelled and distraught, and laugh.

"What's so funny?" The Doctor asked, offended.

Rose could only laugh harder, eyes tearing. "The great and powerful Time Lord is afraid of my mum!"­­

"Oi! She has one heck of a slap! And if she sees you in my room, she'll use it!"

Rose crawled out from under the covers and motioned him to come towards her. He hesitantly did so.

"She likes you, you know," Rose explained. "Never liked any of my male friends before. Well… didn't mind Mickey. He fixed things for her."

"Right…" the Doctor replied, trying not to notice how very close they were. His hands twitched, slowly coming to rest at her waist. Or rather, the skin between her pink cotton camisole and matching shorts. He couldn't help but let himself imagine the skin _beneath_ the camisole and shorts.

The Doctor wondered if there was a special place in what humans considered _Hell_ for dirty old men like him.

Rose, unaware of his thoughts, busied herself smoothing down his unruly locks (which were defying gravity at the moment), then slid her hands to his chest. He closed his eyes, his one heart speeding up beneath her palm.

The Doctor could hear the sound of Rose's pulse racing in turn, smell the change in her body as she reacted to his proximity and the feel of his skin.

His lips parted ever so slightly, his tongue tasting the pheromones she didn't realize she was releasing.

Susceptible Time Lord senses did not mix well with raging Human hormones.

He quickly stumbled back, effectively ending his delicious torment before it could drive his body to do something embarrassing.

"Doctor?" Rose asked with concern, "Are we okay?"

The Doctor realized she had taken his pulling away as an offense. He immediately offered a grin to put her at ease. "We're always okay."

Rose smiled at that. "We best get dressed and head to work."

"Right," the Doctor agreed.

Rose headed to her morning shower, and the Doctor began the tedious process of matching his new wardrobe up.

Life was so much simpler when he lived in a time machine.

* * *

Director Pete Tyler looked over the reports before him.

Last night, there had been a slight power surge in Section 8. It had temporarily shorted out the Torchwood mainframe, which had since been fixed.

There was no information about what had caused the power surge, nor did he expect there would be. Section 8 had never been forthcoming with their research.

One of the drawbacks of being funded by the government was that the government were allowed their own top-secret research along with the more benign research the Torchwood employees and scientists did every day.

He only hoped what they were doing down there wouldn't cause any troublesome side effects.


	5. Episode 5

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 5

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

The Doctor sat in his Torchwood office, staring at the wall. Today had been a slow day. He had already finished categorizing the latest Torchwood tech and filed it in alphabetical order in the vaults.

He sat back in his chair and stared at the ceiling above.

The Doctor immediately straightened up in his seat, sensing something that was at once familiar, and yet _not_.

He shook his head and wrote it off as an overactive imagination. Besides, it was Friday. 16:59:59h, to be precise.

It was time to head home and relax.

* * *

Saturday breakfast with Jackie and Pete was as near to torture as the Doctor had ever suffered. Oh, Jackie was happy enough to talk, telling him about Tony and everything silly little thing he had done this morning – which wasn't really much different than what he had done the morning before and the morning before that…

After a while, breakfast chat grew tiresome and the Doctor found himself trying to think of a polite way he could be alone with Rose and talk about … well… _them_… which obviously needed talking about. He was running a few scenarios through his head when Rose's mobile began to ring.

"Sorry, work." She apologized. "Be back in a few."

"But it's the weekend, luv!" Jackie protested.

"Sorry, mum. Aliens don't keep office hours." She stepped into her room and shut the door behind her.

Jackie immediately turned her attention back to the Doctor and he knew the look on her face meant nothing good for him. Pete took this moment to excuse himself. The Doctor couldn't help but think the man a traitor to his gender at that moment.

"So, Doctor…" Jackie began.

"John," The Doctor interrupted.

"What?"

"Call me _John_. Or don't. Really doesn't matter, to be honest," he sighed. "It's just that everyone calls me _John_ at Torchwood… or Doctor Smith. Trev calls me something else entirely, but that's not for polite conversation at the breakfast table."

Jackie raised an eyebrow, "Seems odd calling you _John_ after all this time."

He shrugged, "I sometimes forget to answer to it. Maybe having family use the name might help."

Jackie was taken aback, "We're your family?"

"Closest thing I have now, I suppose," he answered with a sad smile.

"So, that means you're really capable of loving her?"

The Doctor blinked at that. "Sorry?"

"It's a simple question, Doctor – _John_."

He winced at the name, "Well, maybe you don't have to call me _John_. Does sound a bit odd." He glanced at Jackie and noticed she was still waiting for an answer to her question. He took a deep breath and released it, "I was always capable of loving her, Jackie. I just couldn't _let_ myself. Now I can." He paused, his voice dropping, "If _she'll_ let me."

Jackie waved that away, "Give her time. She's lost you twice now, you know. Even though you're still here… and blimey, that's confusing enough." She studied him a moment, "You still got all that Time Lord brain power?" He nodded. "And you don't miss all that travelling?"

"I don't have a choice, do I?" The Doctor answered.

Jackie's voice was soft, but her frustration was clear. "Choice has nothing to do with it. I don't want my daughter to give you her heart only to have you get restless and build yourself some ship to fly off in."

"If I did – and I'm not saying I would. Or _could_, for that matter - I would take Rose with me."

The Doctor was saved from Jackie's response as Rose entered the room once more, dressed in her Torchwood fatigues.

"What's this?" Jackie asked as she stood up.

"Hoix attack," she said. "Took out three of our people already."

"Rose!" The Doctor jumped to his feet.

"Stay here," she insisted. "I know how to get rid of it. I _have_ fought one before, you know. Warm liquids, right?"

"Well, yeah… but it's dangerous!"

Rose let out a soft laugh, "I've been doing this for while now, Doctor. Could use you in the Torchwood infirmary though," she offered.

"I'm not that kind of Doctor," he answered.

Rose smiled. "Doesn't matter. An extra pair of hands is always welcome."

* * *

Heavy footsteps followed behind Rose as she led the Hoix into the trap. The faster she ran, the faster it followed.

"That's it…" she murmured, "Just a bit more. C'mon… here's a pork chop!" she waved the meat behind her, her pace never slowing. "C'mon boy!"

Things would have gone as planned if Rose had taken into account how long the Hoix's arms were. How easily its clawed hand could reach out and grab _her _instead of the offered meat. How her strength was no match for it, and how quickly she could find herself face first in the dirt.

Her vision of Trev and Les running towards her with a bucket of warm liquids was blurred, and her leg hurt. No. Burned. As if something was gnawing at it. Tearing. Ripping.

For the first time in all her years at Torchwood, Rose Tyler found out first hand how quickly blood loss could make one pass out.

* * *

"The Hoix bit her deep," Dr. Owen Harper explained to the Doctor, Jake, and Trev as they gathered in the Torchwood infirmary. "Tore through tissue pretty good. Luckily no nerves or bones were damaged. She's going to need someone to help her get around for a bit."

The Doctor nodded. "Already in the house."

Trev scoffed at that, "She can't walk. Needs someone to lift her. Doubt you can do it, beanpole."

"I can help her just fine," the Doctor replied. "Trust me."

He let out a laugh, "As if I would!"

The Doctor's jaw grew tight with anger. "I don't recall ever doing anything to cause Torchwood to question my loyalty."

"You're a bloody alien! That's enough to question your so-called loyalty!"

"Trev!" Rose barked. "You will show respect to Dr. Smith this instant!"

"I'm sorry, Rose," Trev retorted, "He acts like he has some kind of right to roam around free here." He turned to the Doctor. "You pretend you're all peaceful and mild mannered and only here to help, but I don't believe that for a minute! You have blood on your hands, Smith. One look in your eyes is enough to tell me _that_!"

"I do what needs to be done," The Doctor replied, darkness entering his words. "There are choices I have had to make that you will NEVER understand."

"And you ask us to trust you?" Trev snorted. "Sounds like you got some ulterior motives there, spaceman."

"No ulterior motives. Not when it comes to Rose," the Doctor countered, his tone sharp.

"And what makes her so bloody special to you?"

"I _love_ her!" The Doctor snapped, then realized his rather assertive answer had carried through the infirmary.

He slowly turned to face the rest of Torchwood's medical and field staff, his expression quickly changing.

The Doctor tugged on an ear, then crossed his arms, "Right… well…" he uncrossed his arms, ran his hands through his hair, shifted from one foot to the other, then finally settled on shoving his hands in his pockets in the attempt to look nonchalant. "Let's just pretend I didn't say that, shall we?"

"Except you were a bit loud there, mate," Jake answered from Rose's side.

"No… no I'm sure I wasn't," he replied quickly.

He turned back to Rose, only to find Trev's fist about to make contact with his jaw. The Doctor caught it easily, grateful he still had his Time Lord reflexes.

"Oi, Trev!" Jake snapped, stepping forward in case he needed to intervene.

The Doctor tsked, squeezing Trev's fist hard enough to cause the man to look pained. "You ever consider taking an anger management course? Or maybe some yoga? Meditation?"

"You think this is a _joke_?" Trev hissed as the Doctor caught a swipe from the soldier's other fist. "A great big bloody joke?"

The Doctor used his few extra inches of height and pressed forward, causing Trev to lose his advantage.

"Lieutenant Jordan!" Pete's voice boomed through the infirmary, "In my office. NOW!"

The Doctor quickly released Trev and stumbled back, surprised that he had given in to the very human testosterone now lurking within his Time Lord DNA.

Trev stared at him, amazed that the normally passive Doctor had used even that little bit of physical force on him. The Doctor wasn't sure if it was fear, anger, or respect he now saw in the man's eyes.

Perhaps it was better not to find out.

Silently, Trev turned his back on the Doctor and walked obediently towards Pete.

Rose carefully slid to the edge of the examination table. "I think Trev's starting to like you."

"Ahh, I see. So that attempt to punch me was just one of those manly rites of passage?"

Rose laughed, "Okay, so maybe _like_ is an overstatement. Least he didn't pull out the gun this time."

"Well, there's that," the Doctor agreed.

Rose then reached out for his assistance. Instead of simply helping her to her feet, though, the Doctor lifted her into his arms and motioned for Jake to grab Rose's crutches.

Rose sighed, "You're gonna cause me no end of embarrassment, aren't you?"

"Oh yes!" He answered, and made a great show of carrying her out of the infirmary with Jake in tow.

* * *

Rose sunk down on her bed gingerly, pushing her crutches to the side. The Doctor hovered a few feet away. He had been hovering since they had arrived home an hour ago.

"Jake called while you were in the loo. Trev's been suspended without pay for a couple of days to _cool off_. At your dad's insistence," The Doctor offered. Rose nodded. He studied her, concerned. "Are you all right?" She shrugged and he could see her wince as she tried to lift her leg onto the bed. He was at her side immediately, helping her get comfortable.

"Need anything?" He asked, "Maybe some hot cocoa? That always makes you feel better."

"So do pain killers," she muttered.

"You had some already. Only supposed to have two every five hours."

"Hasn't it been five hours?" she asked hopefully.

"It's been one-hour, forty-four minutes, and thirty three seconds. Thirty-four seconds. Thirty-five now…" she looked surprised. He grinned, "Time Lord brain, remember?"

Rose pouted at that.

"Still. This might help," the Doctor reached into his pocket and brandished his new sonic screwdriver. Her eyes went wide for a moment, and he felt rather proud of himself. "Finished it the other night."

He sat down on her bed and carefully placed her injured thigh on his lap. He fixed a setting and slowly ran the familiar blue light over the bandages. "This will give you a bit of a massage. Ease the muscles."

She nodded and watched him. He seemed so intent in his task that she didn't want to disturb him, but she knew now was as good a time as any. "Can we talk?" she asked hesitantly.

He finished the treatment and settled back on his elbows, her leg still on his lap. She didn't seem to mind.

"Go on," he offered.

"You've got ALL his memories? All his feelings?" She asked.

"I'm every bit _him_. Or rather, I'm every bit _me_. I don't feel as if I'm any different." He paused, "Well… except the one heart bit. Wizard, that. But I'm still me..."

Rose ran a hand through her hair. "I get that, I do. So... why do I feel like this? Why do I _feel_ like something's different?"

"Rose," he took her hand, "I know I'm the _other _one to you. I understand that. If you feel something's different perhaps it's easier to see it as another regeneration." He frowned, "A weird, part human regeneration." He met her eyes. "Has my personality changed that much? I know I've developed a bit of Donna's snark, but-"

"No," she interrupted. "Well, yes to the snark, but… no to the personality change. Nothing so different like last time, at least."

The Doctor ran a gentle hand over her bandages, "Look, I may not have the TARDIS, but I have the one adventure I never thought I _could_ have. No burden of saving the Universe hanging over my head, and the chance to grow old just like you beautiful humans. Always thought Time Lords lived too bloody long anyway," he grinned.

Rose chuckled. "You _won't_ live so long if you don't ease up on the really loud declarations in front of Trev."

"Weellll… that… that was a bit over the top." He gently slid her leg back onto the bed and stood up. "So, cocoa?"

"Yeah. Sounds good."

"Brilliant!" He quickly headed to the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with a nice tray of hot cocoa and cookies. "Had to wrestle this away from the kitchen staff! Stingy lot. Like to control the food." He huffed as he placed the tray on her night table and sat down on the bed again, handing her a cup and cookie before taking his own.

She looked at him with curiosity, then raised an eyebrow. "Are humans and Time Lords sexually compatible?"

The Doctor choked on his hot cocoa.

"Why do you want to know _that_?" he sputtered. "Well… I mean… I can _guess_ why…" He cleared his throat, "To answer your question - in _theory_ at least - _yes_."

"In theory?" Rose repeated with, the Doctor thought, a bit of concern.

"Essentially, we're physically compatible with humans, but our reproductive organs are a little different."

"How different?"

"Rose!" he protested, rather embarrassed to be speaking of such things with her.

"What?" She asked innocently. "Give me a biology lesson here, Dr. Smith."

_A biology lesson_? Yes. That could work. It would make the conversation less personal, at least.

The Doctor pushed to his feet and placed his mug on the night stand, his voice taking on a professional tone.

"Well, Ms. Tyler - like humans, a Gallifreyan foetus takes nine months to develop. And again like humans, our gender characteristics begin to take form in the third month." He explained. "A Gallifreyan female develops the same as a human female, but the male…" he wagged a finger, "No, he's different. While a human male's reproductive organs are fully on the outside, a Gallifreyan male's reproductive organs are only _partially_ on the outside."

Rose studied him with true curiosity, "Which part?"

He glanced at her and raised an eyebrow, "The part that allows us to join with a female, of course. Would be rather useless otherwise."

"Oh," Rose considered, "So what you're saying, then… is that Time Lords have no balls?"

"ROSE TYLER! What would your mum think of such crassness?" The Doctor scolded.

"Is that a _yes_?"

He cleared his throat and turned away, jamming his hands into his pockets. "We most certainly _do_! They're just not all dangly and vulnerable like _you_ lot." He added a sniff of superiority to his comment.

"'Course," he continued. "You might find the difference a little disconcerting when we-" he stopped when he realized what he was about to say. "That is, IF we- I mean, I'm not presuming to think that you and I WILL…" his eyes fell to the carpeted floor. "Forget those last few half-sentences, please."

"Forgotten," Rose replied with a smile, then grew silent.

He glanced back at her and noticed the smile had long since faded, "What is it?"

She met his eyes and finally spoke, "How long you gonna stay with me?"

The Doctor grinned as he bounced back onto the bed, "Forever! Well… I say forever. More like sixty or seventy years. Well… I say sixty or seventy. For better or for worse. 'till death do us part. As long as we both shall live." He furrowed his brow, "No, wait… that was a marriage vow. I wasn't implying…" he shifted nervously. "That is, Time Lords don't really do marriage, per se, but I know you lot do." He glanced back at her, "ARE you asking about marriage?"

Rose laughed. "Marriage isn't even on my radar right now. How about we just take this one step at a time, yeah?"

He nodded. "Take as many steps as you need."

With a smile, Rose pulled him into her arms and buried her face against his neck.

"Oh," he breathed as he gladly returned the embrace, "I like this step."

* * *

Rose immediately woke at the sound of ringing, then groaned when she realized she was still in a fair amount of pain.

"Tyler residence," a voice spoke behind her as she felt the bed shift. She rolled over to see the Doctor's t-shirt clad back as he pushed himself into a sitting position. He had long since declared himself Rose Tyler's personal nursemaid and had insisted on staying close by should she need his help.

Oddly enough, she was getting used to waking up beside him.

"Trev… what a pleasure to hear your voice first thing in the morning. Two days passed already?" He seemed rather disappointed. "Rose? She's here. Beside me. In bed…"

Rose quickly reached out and smacked the Doctor's shoulder, "Oi!" He jumped and turned to see the rather angry glare she was offering him. "Thought you were still asleep."

"What does he want?" She asked.

"Doesn't matter. You're not going to work today." He turned his attention back to the phone. "That okay with you, Trev? Is Rose allowed a day off due to almost getting dismembered?" He was silent a moment, "You called for ME?" he asked, then waited. "Now now, Trev. No need to be rude. You have to listen to your superiors, after all. What is it they need?" He nodded and murmured in response, then finally ended the conversation.

"You were taunting him again." Rose muttered.

The Doctor lay beside her, "Being that I've been an incredible help to you these last two days, can I get a free pass on the taunting?"

"No. What was the call about?"

"Oh!" He grew excited. "Alien business. Well, they're calling it a_ haunting_, but obviously Torchwood isn't convinced. Claim there's a growing energy reading from the location that could only be of alien origin."

"Haunting? Like the Gelth?"

He nodded, "That was my thought too." He sat back up, "I'm supposed to join Trev and the others in the field."

"But you don't have any field experience," Rose fretted.

"I have over a millennia of experience, thank you very much!" The Doctor protested.

Rose furrowed her brow, "Thought you were only nine-hundred and four?"

The Doctor did a rather impressive imitation of a fish, then glanced away.

"You've been _lying _about your age?" Rose exclaimed.

"Oi! After a thousand years, I'm allowed to shave off a century… or three…"

She narrowed her eyes, "How old _are_ you?"

He shrugged, "Lost count somewhere. Moot point now. Human lifespan and all." He jumped to his feet, avoiding any further questions. "Anyway, Earth needs defending." He quickly headed to the door.

"WAIT!" She called out. The Doctor hesitantly turned back to her. "Don't forget your uniform."

"Do I really need it?"

"The uniforms offer padding and protection, so yeah." She then offered a smirk, "And I think you look fit in it."

"Oh…" he replied, unsure how to respond. He supposed that might make it worthwhile then. He turned back to the door, but hesitated, glancing at the bed-ridden woman. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Mum's home. No worries. You can help me up though. Need to use the loo."

The Doctor quickly rejoined Rose's side and helped her to her feet, handing her the crutches.

When she finally had her balance, he kissed the top of her head and rushed out before she could ask any more age-related questions.

* * *

The Doctor replayed that morning's events in his mind as he waited for the first light to turn green.

With the talk about work, the instruction on what he should wear, the banter about his age, he could see something happening. A change developing. It was all starting to add up to one thing:

The Doctor was doing _domestic_.

And _that_, beyond anything else, was more frightening than a ship full of Daleks.


	6. Episode 6

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 6

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

"Oooh, a haunted house!" The Doctor began as he looked around the decrepit mansion where the _ghosts_ were last seen.

"This is fun to you, is it?" Trev accused.

"Oh yes!" The Doctor replied.

"C'mon, Trev! Ease up on John. He's alien and all," Les pointed out. "Go with Roger. Doc, you're with me."

Trev frowned but did as Les commanded. She was in charge until Rose was back on her feet.

"Am I scanning things?" The Doctor asked when Les handed him a small piece of equipment that looked like something akin to an iphone.

"Yeah. If you don't mind?"

"Don't mind. Got something better to scan with though." He reached into his Torchwood issue flak jacket and brandished his favourite tool.

"What's that now?" she asked.

"Sonic screwdriver. Made it myself. Lost the last one I had. You see, it has several settings…" He walked on, cheerfully prattling about his sonic screwdriver – until a feminine scream echoed down the hall.

Les and the Doctor quickly ran to the source of the scream, only to see Trev running towards them. In a great show of physics, specifically Momentum = mass­ x velocity, the two males ended up meeting in a heap of limbs on the floor.

"Bloody Spaceman!" Trev hissed as he disentangled himself from the Doctor.

"Bloody Earth boy!" The Doctor replied, then furrowed his brow. "Wait a tick. That scream Les and I just heard… was _you?_"

"I didn't scream!" Trev answered, a little too quickly.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Ooooh, you're such a _liar_. Not very manly of you, Trev. You're supposed to be the brawn of the team and all." Trev tried to protest the Doctor's accusation, but was promptly ignored. "Where's Roger then?"

"I…" Trev jumped to his feet, "He was here! I swear he was. Right behind me."

Les stepped forward to assist the Doctor up, "Tell me you didn't leave him back there, Trev."

"He was behind me!" Trev insisted. "We saw … something. A shadow. It was coming at us. Our weapons didn't work on it so I made a command decision to retreat."

"And scream like a girl, apparently," The Doctor added.

"Oi!" Trev snapped. "Want I should make_ you_ sound like a girl?"

"Well, as tempting as that sounds," the Doctor frowned, "We need to look for Roger." He began to walk down the hall, but stopped when he noticed no one was following him. "What?"

"Last I checked," Les began, hands on her hips, "_I _was the commanding officer here."

"Oh…" the Doctor realized. It was difficult to follow someone else's lead.

"I say we go find Roger," Les decided.

"Brilliant plan, Commander," The Doctor grinned.

Weapon at the ready, Les led the two down the hall, calling out for Roger along the way. She came upon an old wooden door and pushed it open. "Hello?"

The group walked into the rather large Victorian room. The Doctor glanced around, his eyes drawn to a dresser against the far wall. Curiosity forced him to open it. He found several silver shifts and a few silken nightgowns. "What's the address again?"

"Fifty Berkeley Square."

The Doctor furrowed his brow. "Historical. Probably one of the most haunted mansions in London." He stopped. _At least, in the other universe._

"What... is… that…?" a whisper escaped from Trev.

The Doctor turned to see what had caught Trev's attention, and froze.

Before the group stood a young translucent woman. She was glowing soft white, with long golden hair flowing to her waist.

"Amazing," The Doctor commented softly.

The woman suddenly turned to him, blue eyes wide. She opened her mouth to speak but no sound came out.

She then turned towards Les.

Before anyone could stop her, she darted towards the brunette and disappeared.

"Les?" Trev spoke up when he saw his temporary commander had yet to move in response to what had just happened.

She cocked her head towards him, standing motionless, eyes glowing blue, staring as if she had never seen him before.

The Doctor took a step towards her, "Who are you?"

Les suddenly began to speak in a language The Doctor had not heard for several hundred years. "Ah… I see…" he realized. "Not Gelth." He then replied in the same language.

"What the hell is going on?!" Trev demanded as he backed away from the two before him. "You both possessed now? Your heads' gonna start spinning 'round?"

"Oh don't be daft," The Doctor replied impatiently, "We're simply talking!"

"Talking?" Trev asked suspiciously.

"Talk-ing," the Doctor pronounced slowly. "To communicate or exchange ideas and information verbally. To consult or confer, to-"

"I know what it bloody-well means!" Trev snapped angrily. "What are you _saying_?"

The creature inhabiting Les responded in English.

_We do not mean any harm. Long ago, our ship was damaged. We found ourselves falling until this world appeared before us._

"Do you know what damaged the ship?" The Doctor asked.

_An energy spike. It was so bright, we could not describe it. _

"The rift?" The Doctor wondered.

_If that is what you call frightened the inhabitants of this place when we took up residence, though we did not intend to. We have only been able to communicate with others when there is a living body present to use as an avatar. _

"And the minds in those bodies?" The Doctor asked suspiciously.

_They are well. This creature… Les, you called her? She sleeps now. She will later awaken as if from a dream._

The Doctor nodded at this, relieved. "This planet is called Earth. I'm the Doctor, and the creatures here are Humans."

Les nodded at that. _But you are not one of these hu-mans?_

"I'm not native to this planet, no."

_Ah, then you are as confused by this world as we are. _

"Well… I _have_ had several dealings with humans, but that doesn't make them any less confusing."

_I understand. We asked the … hu-mans… for help but they seemed very frightened and called us… 'Demons'. What is a demon?_

The Doctor waved his hand, "Humans have varying beliefs. In many cases, they create stories for things they don't understand. An unknown creature inhabiting a human body just happens to fit one of those stories."

"A'right you," Trev began, coming up closer and aiming his weapon at Les, "Leave her now! Or else!"

The Doctor put a hand on Trev's gun, gently pushing it out of the way. "A bit counterproductive if you're trying to save her, isn't it?"

Trev glared at the Doctor, glanced back at Les, then holstered his weapon with a scowl. He really didn't like it when the aliens were right.

_Can you help us return home?_

The Doctor turned his attention back to the creature inhabiting Les. "If memory serves – and it usually does, even in parallel worlds - it's been over a century since the first claim of paranormal activity in this house. Why do you want to leave _now_?"

_Your rift is opening once more to where we need to be. It will take place within forty-eight hours. We cannot miss this chance, for we may never have it again._

The Doctor nodded. "If I help you, will you promise to leave all those you've possessed intact?"

_Yes. That was always our plan. We see no need to stay here. It is rather… primitive._

"Take me to your leader!"

Not!Les didn't seem to understand the reference.

The Doctor was crestfallen. "Show us to your ship then…"

"Are you crazy, Spaceman?" Trev demanded, "You have no idea what they're planning!"

The Doctor turned to Trev, "They're planning to go home."

"What about Roger?" Trev asked suspiciously. "What did they do with him?"

_Your Roger is with the others, working on the ship. He is unharmed. We needed to borrow him._

"There you go, Trev."

"But…"

"But what? If you want Les and Roger back, then we help them get home."

With a harsh scowl, Trev followed the Doctor and not!Les to where they needed to be.

* * *

The Doctor quickly wrote up his analysis of what had happened in the so-called haunted house. The damage to the ship had not been as bad as he had thought.

Two hours, a bit of extra metal, a touch of welding, and setting 4632 on the sonic screwdriver was all that was needed to make the ship fly once more. He was just grateful it wasn't his job to explain to twenty very confused humans what had happened to them in the past few days.

He had left that up to Trev.

The Doctor printed up his very detailed report (a word for word, second to second analysis of all that had occurred) and sent it through interoffice mail. He then made his way to the lab, which he found far more interesting than his office, and froze.

There it was again. That odd buzzing in the back of his mind. He closed his eyes a moment and tried to concentrate on it. It was weak. Too weak to pick up.

After a few moments, it disappeared.

He pushed it from his mind and slid his glasses on to study the sonic. There was a setting he had been thinking of adding shortly after Rose was hurt. Now would be a good time to do so.

It would give him something to think about other than the fact he might just be going nutters.

* * *

Rose's eyes flew open as she felt the bed depress. She looked up to see the Doctor lying on his stomach, chin propped up in his hands, face inches from hers.

"You've been sleeping all day, so I've been told," he said.

"Painkillers," she murmured, still sleepy.

"Missed you today. Had to fight ghosts all by myself. Least they weren't Cybermen this time."

Rose offered a sleepy smile, "Who ya gonna call?"

"Definitely not Trev. He screams like a girl," the Doctor grinned. He pushed himself to a sit and toed off his trainers, crossing his legs on the bed as he turned to face her. "I added a new setting to the sonic screwdriver when we were done ghost-busting. Epidermal and muscle repair." He indicated her leg then patted his lap.

"You can do that?" she asked.

"Of course. I'm clever," he replied proudly.

Rose raised an eyebrow, but gingerly slid her leg out from the covers and allowed him to help her from there.

"Now it's not perfected yet," he explained. "But worst it can do is nothing. Won't make you explode or anything."

She seemed a bit wary, but took a deep breath and trusted his skills.

The Doctor unwrapped the bandage – which had been recently cleaned – and slipped on his glasses. "Let me know if you feel anything strange."

"Kind of tingly…" she replied as he scanned the blue light over the ugly wound on her leg. "Bit itchy…"

He nodded, "Means it's working." He continued in silence for a few more minutes, then shut the screwdriver off. "Still needs work," he frowned as he looked at the injury. The raw red skin had turned to a healthier pink but went no further. "Saved you about a week of healing at least."

"Doesn't hurt nearly as much," Rose noticed. She then glanced at the painkillers. "Might be able to ease up on those now."

This pulled a smile from the Doctor. He reached for the med kit on her night table and rewrapped the injury, knowing the new skin would still be tender.

"What made you think of that setting?" Rose asked.

"Well…" he taped up the gauze and put everything back in the kit. "You were hurt. Really all the motivation I needed. Actually, I've been thinking the sonic could use a few more additions. First-aid settings certainly wouldn't go amiss."

Rose looked up at him, then reached out and pulled him into an all-consuming embrace, her face pressed against his neck. "Thank you." She let herself fall back onto the bed, still holding onto the Doctor.

He closed his eyes, feeling her soft and warm beneath him. It was completely innocent, but wonderfully intimate as well.

He didn't mind in the least.

"Rose Tyler," he murmured against her hair, "I love you…"

Her soft snoring was the only response he received.

* * *

_The Doctor was in the TARDIS. _

_No. "A" TARDIS. A war TARDIS. Type 103._

_He saw the fighting around him. Daleks vs Time Lords vs anyone else who had been unfortunate enough to get in the way._

_It was the death throes of the Time War. But this was not where he had been during those final days. Hours. Minutes. Seconds. _

_An explosion rocked the sky. The side of a mountain had been blasted away, debris falling upon Gallifrey in a hail of burning rock._

_Such destruction._

_An explosion from the TARDIS's control column knocked him off his feet, flames pouring forth uncontrollably. On the view screen, he could see tears opening in the very fabric of space. _

_His TARDIS was being pulled towards one of them._

_He tried to stand up, scrambling for purchase as the ship rocked violently and started to fall apart at the seams._

_He couldn't move. Something was surrounding him._

_He suddenly felt his body grow old rapidly. So old. So quickly._

_And he regenerated._

_His body began to age once more._

_He regenerated again._

_The Doctor found himself in a time bubble. The TARDIS was distorting before his eyes. Growing old and worn just as he was._

_Pain. Such pain._

_Aging. Regeneration._

_Over and over. _

_Temporal distortion of the worst kind. That was what it was. _

_One of the dangers of a time machine._

_Aging. Regeneration._

_It was too much, too fast. His body could not cope._

_He couldn't stop it. Couldn't slow it down._

_In moments, his body would overload, and he would become naught but dust. _

_But the TARDIS would live on, pulled through one of the many vacuous holes that had been torn in the space around him. _

_Pulled into nothingness just as Gallifrey disappeared from Time and Space._

* * *

The Doctor shot up in bed, gasping for air. The pain in his chest was…

… was non-existent.

One heart. No regenerations.

Same as it ever was.

Watching Gallifrey burn…. No… _disappear_… confused him. He saw the flames but… there should have been debris. Gases. _Something_ to indicate it had been there in the first place.

In his dream, there was nothing. A ball of fire… then _nothing_.

Memories were funny. His brilliant mind had been damaged in the Time War along with his body. It coloured his memories and his dreams. How much worse would he have become if he had not met Rose when he did?

One thing he was sure of, was that Gallifrey's destruction was HIS fault. And he had time locked the war to make sure no one could go back and interfere.

_Well, that brilliant plan failed miserably, _he taunted himself.

The Doctor then furrowed his brow. _What did you time lock it with?_ He asked himself. He ran his hands vigorously through his hair. _What kind of key? _

_A key… there was a key…_

The Doctor scrambled out of the bed and walked on shaky legs into the hallway. He looked back and forth, but saw no other soul awake in the Tyler household.

He couldn't go back to sleep. Not after that dream.

The Doctor quietly made his way to Rose's room and knocked gently. There was no answer. He knocked again, and still received no answer.

He slowly pushed the door opened only to see the bundle of blankets and shock of blond hair curled up into a ball.

"Rose?" he called out gently as he walked closer to the bed. He was greeted with silence.

With a sigh, he lay down on the empty side of the bed and stared up at the ceiling.

He would just wait until she woke then.

* * *

"You're here. Again…" Rose murmured as she rolled over in her bed to look at the Doctor lying beside her.

"Well, I-" he stopped. Perhaps _I had a bad dream_ wasn't the best subject to delve into now. "… I wanted to make sure you were all right. Again." He answered quickly.

"Achy still, but it's not unbearable." Rose said as she inched closer to him. She rested her head on his chest and slid an arm around his narrow waist.

Upon hearing the thump of his single heart, she immediately felt her throat constrict. "You must be so lonely here. I should be helping you adjust better."

She felt his sigh as much as heard it. "I've been lonely for a long time, Rose. Here. There. Doesn't matter." He stroked her back. "You help me adjust just fine."

She pushed herself up over him and studied his face intently.

"What?" he asked.

She offered a small smile and shook her head. "You're so different…"

"New new NEW Doctor?" he raised an eyebrow. She didn't answer and the Doctor grew concerned. "When you say different, do you mean _good_ different or _bad_ different?"

"Good, I think. You never would have told me how you felt before."

"You always knew," he answered softly.

She met his eyes, "But it _does _need saying..."

"I had my reasons for not saying," he explained. "Weight of the Universe on my shoulders, along with that whole semi-immortal thing. Had to deal with everything alone." His tone grew softer. "If not for the meta-crisis…" he let the sentence trail off.

Rose was quiet for a moment. "At least he's got Donna now."

The Doctor glanced away, "No. He doesn't."

Rose looked concerned. "Why not?"

"It can't be. A Human/Time Lord meta-crisis? She would have burned up. No, she's not dead," he explained quickly, upon seeing her look of horror. "He would have taken it from her. He would have had to erase her memories of travelling. Of the TARDIS. Of us." He shook his head, "I mean _them_. She's probably back temping now, none the wiser."

"But that's not fair!" Rose protested.

"Her head exploding would have been _less _fair, Rose."

She closed her eyes and let out a resigned breath. She then opened her eyes again and looked worried, "But you…! You're the same!"

"No, I'm not," he corrected. "I'm a Time Lord/Human meta-crisis – amazing what a difference the placement of words make."

Rose furrowed her brow, not quite getting the difference.

"Let me explain," the Doctor began, "Donna was a low-level computer upgraded beyond her capabilities. _I'm_ a high-level computer downgraded to less than what I was." He shrugged. "That's the best comparison I can make."

Rose understood. "So he's alone again." It was a statement, not a question.

The Doctor was silent for a moment, then raised a hand and ran his fingers through her hair. "Are we okay?" he asked hesitantly. "I mean… me not being _him_. Is that okay?"

"That depends," she answered.

He grew conc_e_rned, "On what?"

"If you'll let me kiss you."

His eyes went wide, "Oh! I… well… yes?"

Rose slowly brushed her lips against his. He closed his eyes and savoured the moment. He waited for a second kiss, lips now parted, tongue eager to dart out.

"You have to go to work," Rose said instead.

The Doctor's eyes flew open, "What?" he had been hoping for more than that. "You… you're not going to kiss me again?"

"Work now," she repeated.

"Will you kiss me goodbye before I walk out the door then?"

She raised an eyebrow, "Wouldn't that be too domestic for you?"

"Well, some domestics aren't so bad." The Doctor conceded.

Rose laughed and shoved him playfully off the bed.

The Doctor gracefully found his feet and headed to his room to dress.

The goodbye kiss he eventually received from Rose was all he had needed to have a very good day indeed.


	7. Episode 7

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 7

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

The Doctor had come to the conclusion that December 25th should be Christmas in _every_ Universe, not just the two he was familiar with. He quite liked the idea of that.

What he didn't like was the idea that he was expected to present himself at the Torchwood office party two nights before the fateful day, as per the embossed invitation that had arrived in his hands via inter-office mail.

At least he wouldn't have to go far to attend this party. It was, in fact, taking place in the Tyler mansion. Perhaps he could sneak up to his room part way through.

"Black tie," a voice spoke at the door to his office. He looked up to see Rose balancing on her crutches, a smile on her face. "I get to see you in a tux again."

"You shouldn't be here," he pointed out as he put the invitation down. "You're still on disability leave."

"I'm a visitor today," she pointed to the visitor's pass hanging from her belt. "Came to see my dad and my boyfriend. Nothin' wrong with that."

The Doctor stared at her. "Boyfriend?"

Rose shrugged. "Better than calling you 'cute bloke I kiss now and then', yeah?"

"Cute?" The Doctor leaned back in his seat, contemplating her. "In over a thousand years, I've never been called _cute_. It's all very… human. And quaint. Quaintly human?" he considered.

Rose studied the floor. "Sorry. I forget sometimes."

"Forget what?" The Doctor asked.

She met his eyes with some difficulty. "That you've been around so long. Seen so much." She shook her head, "Even with the human bits, I forget you can be so alien at times… and here I am, calling you _cute._"

"Well, you could say rakishly handsome," he grinned, then noticed the expression on her face. Oh!" The Doctor quickly got to his feet and went over to her, tugging her further into the office and closing the door for privacy. "_Cute_ is fine, Rose. Really, it's fine." He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and saw she was still uneasy.

"What?" She asked when she noticed his intent stare.

He took a deep breath, "Before I met you, I was old. Well… I'm _still_ old, but… it was different. I FELT old. _Going through the motions_ old. You changed that. Gave me back _hope_. Showed me that whatever sacrifices I made were worth it. I'll be forever grateful for that." He stopped, "Well," he rubbed the back of his neck. "I say _grateful._ It's a bit beyond that now…"

"Just a bit, yeah," Rose smiled. "Would it be unprofessional to hug you here?" She glanced out the window overlooking the lab, and the small group of prying scientists currently peering into the Doctor's office.

He quickly stepped away from her and closed the blinds, then rejoined her, gladly taking the offered hug and a drawn out kiss.

After a few moments, he stepped away. "Now tell me, Ms. Tyler – what, exactly is to be expected at this party?"

* * *

_Supper, dancing, and schmoozing… _

These were the main things expected at the Tyler Christmas party. The Doctor had had a fair amount of experience with the first two, but the third one was his specialty.

In THIS incarnation, anyway.

He was considering how to charm the media folk with his rapier wit when the call for help came in from the basement - a weevil had broken free from its cell.

The Doctor wondered if this was a good time to recommend his weevil relocation plan to Pete.

When the Doctor finally reached the basement, the weevil in question was cornering an attempt at supper in the form of one Lieutenant Trevor Jordan.

The Doctor momentarily admired Trev's fortitude as the man expertly reloaded a tranquilizer gun and ignored the salivating creature lumbering towards him.

As entertaining as it would have been to see if Trev's skills were faster then a hungry weevil's survival instincts, the Doctor knew he could not leave such a thing up to chance.

Sneaking up behind the weevil, the Doctor swung his leg around, sending it to it's knees before aiming a well-placed chop to the side of its neck, hitting a nerve point and rendering it unconscious.

Having readied the tranquilizer gun, Trev then shot a round into the unconscious creature.

"You didn't need to do that, you know," the Doctor pointed out. He held a hand out to Trev, who was currently splayed on the floor, weapon still at the ready.

"Better safe than sorry," Trev sniffed arrogantly, ignoring the Doctor's attempt at assistance. "What did you do?"

The Doctor grinned. "Venusian Aikido. Haven't used it in a while, but you never forget something like that."

"What the hell is Venusian Aikido?"

"A form of Aikido created by the Venusians," he replied simply. "A bit difficult for two-armed humanoids to master, being that the Venusians had _five_ arms." He shrugged, "But I manage it."

"You know martial arts," Trev stated, a hint of approval in his voice.

"Well, of course!" The Doctor was about to expound on the virtues of self-defence when something distracted him.

There it was again. That … _thing_… that kept calling out to him.

The Doctor grabbed Trev's wrist and pulled him to his feet. "Lock Janet up, will you? That's a good man."

Before Trev could reply, the Doctor rushed out.

* * *

The Doctor turned down a corridor to his right and walked through a tall set of doors, only to come upon a room full of storage. Or rather, broken bits of probes and satellites that had fallen from the sky after losing orbit.

What he was looking for wasn't in here.

Slowly, the Doctor knelt on the floor, putting his ear to the ground. _There_ it was. Beneath him.

"Is there a reason you're down there?"

The Doctor looked to see Trev crouching at his side, staring accusingly at him. He let out a sigh, "Is there a reason you followed me?"

Trev scoffed, "Always a reason to follow you, Spaceman. You seemed distracted after the weevil fight. Wanted to know if it was something I should keep an eye on."

"Well, that's it. I confess," the Doctor threw his hands up. "I'm secretly plotting world domination. From the storage room." He glanced around, "The very dusty storage room. Filled with useless space junk."

"Is that what this is?" Trev asked as he glanced around at the oddly shaped bits and pieces scattered along the walls and floor. "Always wondered."

The Doctor studied the man before him, "Do you know what's below us?"

Trev seemed surprised at the question, then shrugged, "Section 8. Top-secret government business. Lift doesn't go down there unless you have the proper security codes." He narrowed his eyes, glaring at the Doctor suspiciously, "I wouldn't go poking around if I were you."

The Doctor nodded, "Recommendation noted. And I wouldn't bring your gun to the Torchwood Christmas party if I were _you_," the Doctor offered. "Wouldn't go very well with a tuxedo anyway."

"Recommendation noted," Trev parroted, then pointed down the hall.

"Back to work. Right. Slave driver, you are…" the Doctor muttered. He reluctantly headed back to the lift, Trev following close behind him.

* * *

The Doctor warily studied the Christmas tree now sitting in the Tyler foyer, his fingers tight around his sonic screwdriver.

"It's not going to attack," Rose assured him, nudging him with her crutches.

"You sure about that?" he asked.

"No pilot fish," she pointed out.

The Doctor glanced out the nearby window for robo-santas, but saw none.

"Torchwood would have noticed," Rose assured him.

"Right..." he replied, still hesitant to pocket the sonic. His eyes then fell to the colourful boxes beneath the colourful tree. He stepped a few feet closer, glanced carefully at the tree once more, then finally crouched down and studied the cards on each gift. He suddenly found himself smiling when he saw three with his name on it. One from Pete, one from Jackie, and one from Rose.

He then quickly stopped smiling when he realized that he had not done the same for them.

He should have known better, really. He was _living_ here now. Had the closest thing to a family he could ever expect. And while they had thought of him during their various shopping sprees over the last few weeks, he had completely forgotten _them_.

To top it all off, tonight was the Torchwood Christmas party, and tomorrow would be the twenty-fourth of December. He really didn't have time to waste.

"I… I have to go," he said quickly as he bolted towards the door.

"Where?" Rose called out, but he was long gone before he could answer.

* * *

"Bloody domestic traditions_,_" the Doctor muttered as he studied the window displays in Piccadilly Circus. "I'm an alien from another planet! How could they have expected me to think of something as mundane as Christmas presents?"

Of course, not once had anyone ever indicated that he SHOULD have thought of it. He was simply angry at himself for forgetting such a well-known human tradition.

After walking aimlessly for some time, the Doctor decided to take action. He ducked into the nearest store and went up to the first salesperson he saw on the floor. "What do I get for a twenty-five year old woman?"

The salesperson considered her answer as she looked at the racks. "Can you describe her?"

He thought a moment. "She's all pink and yellow."

She smiled indulgently, "I'm speaking more of her tastes. Lace? Silk? Leather? Does she prefer whips or chains?"

It was only then that the Doctor truly took in the store he had entered. "Um…" he backed away from the salesperson, "Just… give me a moment…"

He stepped outside and read the name of the store, making note of the triple X on the sign.

Oh. No. No, that wouldn't do at all. He was already wincing from the imagined slap Jackie would give him for buying Rose something from a store like this.

Not that the Doctor would _mind_ seeing Rose in something from a store like this…

He quickly shook that thought away and headed down the street, his eyes spying the HMV Megastore a few doors down.

Now _that_ was more like it. A CD or DVD was relatively safe. In fact, a gift card would be that much safer. Three of them. And a special _Ian Dury_ _and the Blockheads _concert DVD for Rose. Specifically from 1979.

He really _had _intended to take her to that…

With his Christmas shopping out of the way, the Doctor headed back to the Tyler mansion.

* * *

The Doctor sat beside Rose as the two watched the party before them. Jackie and Pete had rented her a motorized chair to prevent her crutches from getting underfoot. It was not something she cared for, though, as her current squirming indicated.

Still, it did save her from being forced to mingle. Something she had yet to get used to.

"I feel like an old woman," she muttered.

"Well, I AM an old man," the Doctor replied before leaning forward to place a light kiss against her temple.

A bright flash of light caused them to jump apart, leaving them blinking until their vision returned.

Rose sighed, "That picture will make the society pages. Wonder what the headline will be this time."

"Vitex heiress kissed by attractive time travelling alien..." he grinned.

Rose rolled her eyes, "That'll be beside _Vitex Heiress injured in assassination attempt._"

"Did they really say that?" The Doctor asked.

"The Star did. The more legit papers actually _asked_ what happened. PR told them I tripped on some ice outside the house."

"… while fighting Hoix," the Doctor added with a wink.

Rose laughed.

"OH!" The Doctor gasped, eyes lighting up as _What a Wonderful World_ started to play, "You have this song here too!" He entwined his fingers with Rose's and listened intently.

He grinned down at her, "This song is my reason for doing what I do - DID do - for the last millennia." He paused, "Well…. not the song itself, but the message behind it. It's my _modus operandai_."

He then sat silent, his thumb brushing over Rose's knuckles as the song continued.

"I didn't picture you as the sentimental type," Rose replied as he watched him enjoy the song.

He shrugged. "It happens to everyone over time. Seeing worlds burned, people dying…" he stopped and shook his head. "No matter. New universe, new life."

After the song was finished, he stood up and indicated they leave the ballroom. She nodded gladly.

He pushed her chair into the darkened living room; currently empty and quiet save for the muted music that could still be heard through the walls.

Before Rose could ask him why he had brought her here, the Doctor knelt in front of her and slid off her shoes.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Dancing." He stopped, suddenly reminded of a conversation they had had many years ago, "_Dancing_ dancing, I mean. Not the… other type of dancing."

Rose laughed at the reminder.

The Doctor held his arms open for her, "Come on now."

Rose reached out to him and he lifted her out of the chair, slipping his trainer-clad feet underneath hers.

_Even in a tuxedo_, she thought as she looked down at the black and white chucks beneath her stocking toes.

They had only danced for a few moments before Rose slowly reached up to press her mouth against his. Little by little, lips parted, teeth clicked, and tongues met. It was a far more intimate kiss than they had ever shared before.

Clinging to him for support, Rose gradually pulled away, panting for breath. "That was…" she tried to find words, but nothing could quite describe what had just passed between them. "… amazing," Rose finally managed to blurt out.

"Brilliant…" he added.

Rose then noticed the Doctor slowly rolling his tongue around in his mouth. "Are you… _tasting_ me?"

"NO!" The Doctor sputtered, but his protests quickly died on his lips. "Maybe." He nervously shifted his weight, or rather, both their weights, "Just a little."

He hung his head. The last thing he wanted was for Rose to see he was making note of the orange pekoe tea she had had earlier mixed with the lingering taste of mint from a candy cane and a delectable sweetness that could only belong to her.

"You like to taste things," Rose recalled, pulse racing as she realized his penchant for _licking_ would, of course, extend far beyond Type A-positive blood and mistletoe covered doors.

"Rose?" The Doctor's nostrils suddenly flared as he picked up a rather heady scent: Not only had he apparently left Rose Tyler breathless, but he had somehow managed to _arouse_ her in the process.

He was quite sure that hadn't been his intention, but being that he was feeling a bit lightheaded from the pheromones assailing his senses, he could have been mistaken.

He swallowed hard and quickly helped her back into her chair, as keeping her pressed up against him would have been tempting fate.

His voice suddenly grew louder and lighter as he tried to ignore his unfortunate human hormones. "Back to the party then?"

"Sure," Rose answered, though in reality, she would have been content to remain where she was – alone with him.

"Good good," he pushed her back towards the ballroom. "Can't leave the guests waiting. I'm sure there are more photo opportunities to be had, more rich people to schmooze with, more… _something_ to be done. OH! And food. I love food. Hope supper doesn't include nut-loaf. Well… being that this whole shindig was planned by your mum, who knows."

Rose knew he was babbling now, and found herself chuckling in response.

Eventually, she would have to teach the Doctor that kissing her – or anything else he may have wanted to do – was not something to be ashamed of.

It was, in fact, very _human_.

* * *

Christmas night arrived without incident, and this was followed by Christmas morning, which also arrived without incident (he didn't count the reports of a large Titanic-sized ship hovering temporarily outside Earth's orbit as _incident_, being that it didn't almost crash into Buckingham Palace. This time.).

All in all, it had been a nice holiday. And domestic. He couldn't forget domestic.

Too domestic.

But this was his life now, and really – there were worse things than being snogged under the mistletoe by one Rose Tyler. On three different occasions. Two which included tongues when Jackie and Pete weren't looking.

With all the joy of … well, Tony… on Christmas, the Doctor ripped into his presents. The first one was from Jackie. It was a blue pinstripe suit jacket. Almost an exact match to the one he insisted on wearing every day.

"Your other one was starting to get a bit worn," Jackie offered. The Doctor grinned and thanked her, not having the heart to tell her that the reason he constantly wore the other one was because of the infinite pocket space.

The next gift was from Pete. The Doctor's eyes went wide when he saw what lay in the large box – a long brown coat.

"We had a Janis Joplin here too. Never quite caught on like she did in the other world, from what I understand." Pete explained. "When I took Rose to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a few years ago, she saw this. Couldn't quite figure out why she suddenly grew very quiet."

The Doctor glanced at Rose, who seemed a bit embarrassed, then turned back to Pete, "Is this _really_ Janis Joplin's jacket?"

Pete nodded. "The Hall of Fame was in need of renovations recently, so I made a generous donation. They offered me something in return."

The Doctor couldn't hide the grin. "Brilliant."

"Mine next!" Rose said excitedly, and practically threw her gift at the Doctor. He slowly opened the box and found himself speechless.

Before him lay a black leather jacket almost exactly like the one he had had when he first met Rose. He looked at her, unable to articulate how he felt. He wanted to thank her, but it didn't seem like enough.

One look in her eyes explained it all. She had bought him this jacket because she finally saw him as the same man she had met all those years ago. Not a replica, not a part-human copy, but the _same_.

How could he even begin to convey how much that meant to him?

"Do you like it?" She asked nervously.

He nodded, "It's _fantastic_!"

Rose's ear to ear smile was all the response he needed.


	8. Episode 8

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 8

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

It was another week before Rose could return to Torchwood, her leg healing faster than anticipated thanks to The Doctor's ministrations.

She was temporarily assigned to what was known as the _welcoming committee_ until she was cleared to return to the field.

"So," the Doctor began as he sat on her desk, "What is this _welcoming committee_?"

"Remember when you said that Earth was getting noticed some years back? The _other_ Earth?" He nodded. "Well, _this_ Earth got noticed four years ago, on a fairly large scale. Torchwood made first contact with a species known as the Adipose. Cute little things."

"Oh yes… ran into them myself not too long ago. Well… you know that already. You were there."

"I loved seeing you in action again," she smiled. "Anyway, when they came _here_, they were looking for breeding grounds. We offered them an uninhabited island in exchange for some of their technology. It worked out quite well. Now, every so often, other ships come into our solar system. Usually just to visit. They think Earth is nice and primitive. A quaint little vacation spot. We have an entire department full of people who specialize in first contact and determine a reasonable fee for visitation."

She smiled. "We're like a museum, I s'pose. Once the visitors are cleared, it falls to the welcoming committee to make their stay as comfortable as possible. Like glorified customer service. Sort of slow, though. We don't get a lot of visitors. Not sure if that's good or bad."

"Aren't you afraid of invaders?" he asked worriedly.

She shrugged. "We don't have anything invaders would want. No technology they don't already have."

"It's not always _technology_ they want…" he muttered darkly. "Please tell me Trev's never been on the welcoming committee."

Rose laughed at that, "Are you kidding? We'd end up at war if he was."

Her earpiece beeped and she quickly answered. She waited a few moments as the person on the other side informed her of what she needed to know. She thanked them and closed the comm.

"Time for the welcoming committee?" The Doctor asked.

"Yeah. Went through first contact already and asked for a tour guide. I've been volunteered. Want to come? Could show you what it's all about."

"Brilliant! Where are they from?"

"Desuperina. It's a smaller planet in a neighbouring solar system."

"Not that different from the other universe then," he nodded. "Interesting blokes, the Desuparians. Mostly male, very few female. They only need to reproduce once every one-hundred years. The women are treated like Queens when mating season begins. Usually, the males prefer the company of one another over the company of females. And since pregnancy only lasts a few days, well… the females don't mind."

Rose was surprised, "Only a few days? Must be nice." She then smiled and held out a hand. "Shall we go see our visitors, Dr. Smith?"

"Oh yes, Ms. Tyler!" The Doctor answered, grasping her hand in return.

The two quickly headed out, eager to see what awaited them.

* * *

A little less than an hour later, Rose and the Doctor ended up back at her office, the Doctor breathless from running with Rose slung over his shoulder.

"How was _I _to know it wasn't safe for an unmarked female to be around them?" He protested as he put her back on her feet. "They're not like the Desuparians _I'm _familiar with!"

The Desuparians had wanted far more than a simple tour from Rose. Being nude and rather aroused when she had boarded their ship had made that abundantly clear.

"What do you mean _unmarked_?" Rose replied, leaning on her desk for support. "Do they have some weird cultural obsession with tattoos? I should've been fine then."

"No, that's not-" he stopped and met her eyes. "You have a tattoo?"

"Yeah. Birthday present to myself two years ago. A rose with thorns."

"Oh… lovely!" he smiled, "Where is it?"

Rose raised an eyebrow, "Wouldn't you like to know?"

The Doctor froze for a moment, lips parted, eyes dark as he thought of all the hidden places on Rose's body she could have a tattoo… and how desperately he wanted to find it.

He quickly shook his head, erasing that less-than-innocent thought. "Right… well…" he cleared his throat and took a step back from her, just to be on the safe side. "When I said unmarked, I meant… um…" he seemed uncomfortable. "They have a more… _primal _… meaning for it. A meaning that led them to expect a _different_ kind of customer service from you."

Rose frowned, "You think?"

"The Desuparians have a very strong sense of smell," the Doctor explained. "When mating season comes, it's what they use to pick out a female. See, mating can be a rather delicate procedure. The male Desuparians don't want to take another male's mate. They can tell if a female has been … _unmarked_. That is…" he rubbed the back of his neck, "If she hasn't been _intimate_ with a male for a long while. They believe that makes her …_available_… for mating…" he swallowed hard. "NOT that I'm assuming you've been chaste. I mean, I'm sure you found someone-"

"Went on a few dates, s'all. Nothing came of them," she answered softly.

"Oh," he breathed with relief. "Why not?" He quickly glanced away, "Not that it's any of my business, of course."

"If it wasn't you, it would've felt weird."

"But …" he met her eyes. "Rose, we _never_-I mean… we _weren't_… we _didn't_…" he let the sentence trail before his awkwardness became even more obvious.

She shook her head, "I can't be with a man unless I have feelings for him. And I just didn't feel that way about anyone."

"Oh, Rose. I'm sorry… so sorry." The Doctor replied, feeling incredibly guilty.

"S'okay," Rose limped over to slide her arms around him.

She decided to remain silent about all the nights she had dreamed about being… _marked_… by him when they had travelled together. She hadn't dared make those dreams a reality then.

Here, though, it was different. On those few nights he had slept beside her, she had been slowly building up her courage to make the first move.

It was far easier now than it was on the TARDIS.

On the TARDIS_, _the Doctor was a brilliant untouchable god with a destiny far beyond anything she could imagine.

_Now_, the Doctor was a brilliant, very touchable, earth-bound alien who was willing to spend the rest of his life with her.

Rose's courage was growing by the minute.

"So," Rose quickly let go of him, making sure her courage didn't end up overflowing in her borrowed office. "The Desuparians still need a tour guide, yeah? I'll ask one of the guys."

"Safest thing to do," the Doctor agreed.

Rose quickly made a call to one of the male members of the Welcoming Committee, then turned to the Doctor and offered a smirk, "But that WAS fun, wasn't it?"

He grinned in response. "Always fun running with you, Rose Tyler."

* * *

The Doctor put the finishing touches on his daily report – the latest batch of tech he had studied - making sure it was in easy-to-understand 'human'.

It was a phrase the Doctor had recently coined. It seemed his coworkers had had great difficulty understanding his previous reports. Was it _his_ fault he was genius and the corporate crowd upstairs were _not_? So what if half the terms he used hadn't been invented yet?

As he waited for Rose to retrieve him for the day, he couldn't help but wonder if she had had any more uncomfortable incidents with the welcoming committee. Surely that incident was just a one-off… wasn't it?

"Doctor?" a voice called for him.

The Doctor jumped eagerly to his feet and headed out to meet the lovely blonde waiting in the lab. He held out his hand and she gladly took it.

"Doctor Smith? Do you have any assignments for me before we leave?" a male voice spoke behind him.

The Doctor turned to see a young man he didn't recognize staring at him. "No. Who are you?"

"It's Jason, Doctor," a voice giggled from a few feet away. The Doctor turned to see Tosh standing at her terminal. "Your assistant."

"No. _You're_ my assistant," the Doctor pointed out.

"Surely you remember me, Doctor Smith," Jason stepped over to Rose and put a hand on her shoulder. "Tell him, Rose. Tell the Doctor who I am."

Rose blinked quickly for a few moments. "Yeah. Jason. Jason Jones. He became your assistant when Tosh declined."

"Tosh didn't decline," the Doctor insisted. "She IS my assistant."

"Come now, Doctor Smith. Enough joking," Jason said as he put a hand on the Doctor's arm.

The Doctor felt an odd push in his mind, and quickly stepped back from Jason, dropping Rose's hand in the process. "What did you just try to do?"

Jason looked innocent, "I didn't do anything."

"Yes you did." He narrowed his eyes, tone dark. "I don't know what you've done to Rose and Tosh, but don't try it on me."

Jason clenched his jaw for a moment, then quickly broke into a smile and turned to Rose. "Are we still on for tonight?"

Rose seemed perplexed until Jason reached out and stroked her arm gently. She pulled him into a hug and kissed him.

"Oi!" The Doctor instinctively reached out and pulled the man away. "That's MY Rose you're snogging!" His hand clenched into a fist and he found himself aching to embed it in Jason's face.

"Doctor, let him go!" Rose protested.

"Not until he tells me what he's done to you!" The Doctor hissed, his chest burning with an anger he hadn't felt in a long time. He glared at Jason, "You lay another hand on Rose Tyler, and you WILL regret it!"

"Look, Doctor!" Rose began angrily, tugging Jason away from him. "I've been without you for a long time! I had to go on with my life. What else was I supposed to do?"

"Get on with your life? You were just telling me that you haven't had a serious relationship since you've been here! You don't even KNOW this… this…. JASON!" he spat.

"Such a kidder," Jason replied with a smile. "You just don't want to give me the five quid you owe me. Come on, Rose. Let's go."

Jason slid his arm around Rose's shoulders and the two quickly left the lab.

* * *

The Doctor ran out of Torchwood Towers and towards the parking lot only to see Rose and Jason speeding off in Jason's car. He quickly ran to Rose's car, using the sonic screwdriver to hot wire it.

Following Jason's car to the hotel, the Doctor felt like a stalker. Most people would call his behaviour insane.

But then, most people wouldn't realize that Rose was being telepathically manipulated by a stranger.

The Doctor would be damned if he was going to let someone take advantage of the woman he loved.

* * *

The Doctor went up to the check-in desk and whipped out the psychic paper. "PC John Smith. I have a warrant to search the room housing one Rose Tyler and Jason Jones."

"Of course, officer," the clerk replied obediently as she entered the names into the computer. "Room 204. Second floor."

"Key?"

"What?" she asked.

"Key!" He repeated impatiently. "Time is of the essence here, ma'am."

"Yes sir." She quickly grabbed a keycard and set it for room 204.

The Doctor grabbed it and ran to the elevator.

* * *

When the Doctor reached the second floor, he burst into the room, only to find Rose and Jason engaged in heavy snogging on the cozy queen-sized bed.

The two jumped at the interruption and turned to face the intruder. One look at Rose's flushed face and swollen lips sent the Doctor into a dark, downward spiral.

The Doctor remembered a time when he was far better at managing his emotions, but that was before his perfect Time Lord genes had become polluted with human DNA.

In an uncharacteristic act of violence, he grabbed Jason and punched him hard, bloodying his mouth and sending the young man to the ground in a crumpled heap.

"Doctor?" Rose began shakily as she tried to focus on the scene before her. "What... What's going on? What happened?"

Jason slowly climbed to his feet, wiping the blood away with the back of his hand. He met the Doctor's eyes, and the Doctor felt a push in his mind.

"Are you still trying to get in?" The Doctor asked. "Do you honestly think you could go up against _me_?" Jason smirked and continued to push. "I'm warning you. One more time, and I won't hold back."

His answer was another push. The Doctor shook his head, "I really wish you hadn't done that."

The former Time Lord met Jason's eyes and forced down his shields. In seconds, the younger man fell to the ground screaming, hands cradling his head as the Doctor guided him through a thousand years of death and violence and loss.

"No second chances."

Jason's screaming grew louder and the Doctor grew oblivious to everything else.

"You can stop now!" He felt Rose's warm hand in his, heard the fear in her voice as she spoke.

He immediately broke contact with Jason, leaving the younger man curled up on the floor, shaking, his disguise having faded to reveal green-hued skin and yellow eyes.

Rose recalled welcoming him to the planet a mere three hours ago.

She looked up at the Doctor, voice apprehensive as she spoke, "What did you do?"

The Doctor turned to look at her, at a loss for words as he realized what he _could_ have done had she not stopped him.

"I… I'm sorry," he gasped, then quickly stumbled away from her. "I'm so sorry…"

Before Rose could ask any more, the Doctor ran from the room, and the building.

* * *

"So," Rose began as she sat on the bed beside the Doctor after her statement had been made to First Contact. "Jason – or, Jasama - is being sent home and is prohibited from visiting Earth again. Apparently, he wanted to _claim _a human as his mate and I just happened to be the first female he stumbled upon. Some cultural thing about the second son from a highborne family needing to make familial connections with other species, whether the member of that species is willing or not." Rose explained. "First contact told them that forced matings were against our laws." She furrowed her brow, "I was wondering why there were mostly men working on the Welcoming Committee…"

The Doctor nodded numbly.

Rose studied him, her voice growing soft. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For being there."

He knew she was deliberately trying to avoid mentioning _the incident_. "Rose?"

"Yeah?"

He met her eyes, "Please don't pretend I didn't frighten you."

She swallowed hard and glanced away. "You saved me from being manipulated by a pervert."

"Rose," he gently took her chin and turned her face back to him. "I wouldn't have stopped."

Rose looked at him, jaw set in determination. "Yes you would've."

The Doctor shook his head, "No, Rose. I wouldn't have. I was angry. _So_ angry." He brushed a strand of hair off her face. "Why do you think HE left me with you?" There was no question who HE was.

_He needs you. That's very me…_

Rose glanced away, and he tilted his head to meet her eyes, "Because I need someone to _stop_ me. Just like HE did all those years ago. You have no idea what the Time War did to me, Rose. I was a pacifist for so long… and then I was leading a battle." The Doctor's voice grew quiet, "And destroying my own planet."

Rose furrowed her brow, "What?" He remained silent and Rose grew impatient. "Doctor! What the hell did you mean?"

"Gallifrey burned because of me." He finally answered.

"It burned because of the Daleks. Not you." Rose insisted.

The Doctor released a breath. "The Time War was destroying other planets, other _universes_, and would've spread even further. To wipe out the Daleks and stop the Time War, _I_ had to destroy Gallifrey."

Rose's eyes went wide, "But-"

"I committed _genocide_, Rose. _Twice_ now. Do you really think I would've stopped myself from hurting some inferior creature playing mind games with the woman I--" he cut himself off.

Rose reached out and took his face in her hands, kissing his forehead, his eyelids, and adding a soft warm kiss to his lips. He responded ever so carefully, unsure how she would react.

"Tell me everything?" she asked softly once they parted. "Please?"

He nodded and Rose slid her arms around him, pulling his head to her chest as she lay down on the bed, "It all started on a planet called Skaro…"

Rose gently buried her fingers in his hair and listened as the Doctor told her the bloody story of the Daleks and the Time War.


	9. Episode 9

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 9

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

The Doctor jumped when the call from Control came through his earpiece. Rose had finally managed to talk him into wearing the odd contraption, but it had taken much bribing – mostly in the form of some lovely snogging sessions.

Really, though… one couldn't blame him for being a bit wary considering what had happened with the ear buds in the past, but if wearing it made Rose happy and snoggable, then wear it he would.

"Smith here," he replied as he pressed the button on the earphone.

"We're getting signs of a UFO crash landing at 51°30′31″North 0°9′49″West."

"Hyde park?" the Doctor asked.

"Yessir. The director would like you and Lt. Jordan to catalogue what you find there."

"Ah, Lt. Jordan," the Doctor muttered. "Any signs of intelligence?" He continued, louder.

"None present," Control answered.

"And the ship?"

Control seemed momentarily confused, then chuckled. "No signs there either, sir."

"I'll be there in a few ticks. Smith out."

With an excited hop in his step, the Doctor rushed out of his office and upstairs to the control room.

He was starting to find his Torchwood assignments far more enjoyable than he had ever thought he would.

* * *

The Doctor and Trev stepped into the ship carefully. "Put the gun away, Trev. No life signs here."

"Well whatever _killed_ them might still be here," Trev replied.

"Except there was never a crew on this ship."

Trev glanced at the Doctor, "Then how the hell did it get here?"

The Doctor sighed impatiently. "You humans are an arrogant lot, thinking you're the only ones sending out probes and satellites."

"You're saying this is a probe or something?"

"Kelarian robotized lab, more specifically." The Doctor explained as he studied the various computer terminals. "If they're anything like the Kelarians I know, this ship sends out drones to take samples of the earth, trees, wildlife and whatnot and sends it back to Kelaria. It's a planet full of scientists. Their whole lives revolve around studying other worlds." He went up to one of the terminals, and started to rifle through the data, "See here? They've already-"

Before the Doctor could continue, a blast of laser fire scorched the wall only inches away from them.

Trev and the Doctor shared a startled glance, then the Doctor said the first thing that came to mind.

"Run!"

Trev didn't need to be told twice, and quickly bolted, the Doctor hot on his heels.

"Why do I get the feeling that wouldn't have happened if you hadn't been poking around their computer?" Trev accused as they ran.

"A bit over-protective of their research, it seems…" the Doctor answered as he kept up.

"The space genius didn't know that?" Trev asked when they finally reached the end of the hall.

"Parallel world, remember? Some things are a bit different," the Doctor replied defensively as the two ducked around the next corner.

Trev swore as they only found a dead end. The two froze, knowing full well they couldn't backtrack while the laser fire still continued down the hall.

"Wonderful. How do we get out of here, Professor?" Trev frowned.

"Same way we got in," the Doctor replied, then did a double take. "What did you just call me?"

Trev ignored him. "You expect us to get back to the front hatch? Past the lasers?"

"Yep."

"Bloody hell," Trev muttered as he sat on the ground against the wall. "Don't suppose you have an escape plan?"

"Give me a few. I'll come up with something," the Doctor answered as he sat beside Trev.

"Sure you will, spaceman."

"Have faith, Earth boy."

Trev snorted at that.

The Doctor let out a resigned sigh. "Trev, why do you hate me so much? At first, I thought it was just male testosterone and the fact you have a schoolboy crush on Rose. But lately, I've been thinking it's something else."

Trev glared at him, "Why the hell are you asking this NOW?"

"Well, I figure people are more talkative in a life or death situation," The Doctor offered.

Trev rolled his eyes. The Doctor shrugged in response, then leaned out to the left, towards the corridor, only to duck back when another volley of laser fire came shooting past.

"You weren't fast enough," Trev muttered.

The Doctor frowned, "I was too. Managed to avoid being hit and everything."

"With the Cybermen," Trev continued, staring at the wall in front of him. "You weren't fast enough. They got my mum, dad, and brother before you stopped 'em."

"Oh…" The Doctor was silent a moment, then spoke again. "We tried, Trev. We all tried."

Trev shook his head, "Least I got to know the others. Can't put the blame on them 'cuz I've seen first hand how much they're willing to risk to save this world. _You_ were the only one left to blame."

"Or, you know, you could blame John Lumic for creating the Cybermen in the first place," the Doctor pointed out.

"Lumic was dead. _You_ weren't. Didn't even know you were a bloody alien 'till you got here. Made me wonder if you were playing games with the Cybermen for fun."

"If that's what you think, then you don't know anything about me."

"Then tell me, Smith. Tell me all about you," Trev demanded.

The Doctor turned to him. "I know how it feels to lose everything you ever cared about. I wouldn't wish it on anyone."

"And _how_ do you know?" Trev asked bitterly.

"Let's not have an 'I've lost more than you' competition, Trev. It's in poor taste." But the Doctor saw Trev wouldn't back down.

Reluctantly, the Doctor settled back against the wall. "Very well." He ticked off his fingers, "I've lost my mum, my dad, a man I once considered a brother. Not to mention my children, my grandchildren, my friends, my species, and my entire planet. That enough for you?"

"Grandchildren?" Trev asked warily.

"I wasn't kidding when I said I was older than I looked."

Trev was silent for a moment, then spoke again. "How did you cope?"

_I met Rose…_

"I just did," he answered with a hint of annoyance, then saw Trev was asking him in earnest, looking for answers. The Doctor's tone grew softer. "I learned there was more to the universe than death. This world, its people… there's always something worth living for."

The Doctor suddenly pushed to his feet, "All right then. Shall we get out of here?"

"Figured out a plan?" Trev asked as he stood up as well.

"While we've been chatting, I've noticed that the lasers take three seconds to recharge after every five blasts. They're on sensors, so they can track any move we make." He grabbed Trev's gun and tossed it into the hall.

"OI!" Trev protested, but the Doctor ignored him as the lasers fired. Five blasts.

The Doctor then grabbed Trev's arm and pulled him into the corridor… _3…2…1… _

"MOVE!" The Doctor shouted as he shoved Trev out of the way when the lasers fired once more. He quickly rolled beside him and yanked off the access panel in the wall, ripping the wires out and ending the onslaught of weapons fire.

When he had a moment to breathe, the Doctor found it rather difficult.

No, not just difficult. Painful. Agonizingly painful.

He looked down to see the scorched material of his Torchwood uniform, and the bloodied skin beneath it.

A strangled choke was all he could manage before darkness hit.

* * *

_The Doctor saw the golden light before him and felt the warmth all around him. Many humans claimed to see a bright light before they died. He thought that was rubbish and that there was a perfectly scientific explanation for such hallucinations._

_The light HE was seeing carried nothing supernatural about it, but it was important. Something was trying to communicate with him. Something telling him it would be okay. That he would be all right._

_He wasn't quite sure what to make of the all-too-familiar sound that now surrounded him. _

_A sound he hadn't heard since that day on the beach when the other Doctor had left him in Rose's care._

_The sound grew into a soft humming and he could sense a message. Something was reaching out to him, helping him come out of whatever darkness he was in. _

_Something that was helping his Time Lord DNA heal the damaged tissue in his part-human body. _

* * *

Rose sat at the Doctor's bedside, holding his hand and watching his shallow breathing. The medical team at Torchwood had done what they could and patched up the damage to his body, but there was nothing more they could offer.

Rose had protested that the Doctor was part human and attempted to explain the Time Lord/Human meta-crisis. Surely the mix of DNA counted for something.

"We're at a loss here," Dr. Owen Harper had explained. "He was hurt bad, Rose. His body is still too alien for us to figure out what may or may not help him. If he makes it through the night, then he might be okay. I _think_. I'm sorry."

The conversation with Dr. Harper had been two hours ago and Rose was now sitting alone, staring at the man lying motionless on the gurney beside her.

She took his hand and pressed it to her face. It was cooler than hers - but then, it always was. She leaned forward and pressed her ear to his chest, hearing the one beating heart.

"I have a confession to make," Rose swallowed hard as she straightened up. "I'm not half in love with you. _This_ you, I mean." She clarified. "I've been too scared to tell you 'cuz last time I told you, I lost you. And now…" Her voice cracked with emotion. "Did you really mean it whenyou said you would spend the rest of your life with me? 'cuz I was expecting at least fifty years out of you."

Rose tried to stifle a sob, "I'm gonna ask for my money back if you don't wake up soon."

There was no response. She laid her head on his chest and forced back the tears.

"I was never worth the price, you know…" a scratchy voice replied.

Rose's head shot up only to meet the Doctor's eyes. She sniffled and smiled, "Yeah, you were. You still are."

He gingerly pushed into a sit and ran a hand through his hair. "So this is where I ended up? Think you could have gotten me a better room."

"Lie down. You need your rest," she protested.

"I'm fine," he replied.

"But…"

"Trust me, Rose. I'm fine." He lifted the sheet he was lying under and quickly pulled it back down. "Could use some clothes though."

Rose studied him, brow furrowed. "But… you were hurt! They had to patch you up. Dr. Harper said you might not-" she stopped, not wanting to give voice to what might have been.

"Yeah," he tugged at the top of the hospital gown and looked at the gauze wrapped around his chest. His chest hurt, burned even, but he would heal. "Could do with a couple painkillers."

"I thought you were dying," Rose began softly. "You said you'd spend the rest of your life with me, and I thought…" her voice faded away.

The Doctor quickly pushed off the gurney and slid his arms around her, tucking her head under his chin. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

She wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed. He winced but remained silent.

"Rose?"

"Yeah?" she asked as she looked up at him with red-rimmed eyes.

"My backside's getting a bit of a draft here…"

Rose offered a watery laugh. She pulled away and retrieved a pile of fresh clothes from a nearby chair – which included the leather jacket she had bought him for Christmas.

He took the pile and glanced around the room, finally eyeing a curtained off section. He quickly ran behind it then came back out fully dressed, leather jacket in hand.

Before he could walk any father, Rose hugged him again, pressing her face against his neck and breathing in that not-quite human scent she had grown used to.

He hugged her back with a grin, "Always liked myself a Rose-shaped hug." She pulled away and took a shaky breath. The Doctor's grin faded and he grew concerned. "What is it?"

"I…" Rose closed her eyes. The last time she had told him- but that was a lifetime ago.

It needed saying. Again.

Rose took a shaky breath and met his eyes. "I love you…"

The Doctor was silent for a moment, then slowly his face split into a grin, "Quite right too…" Before Rose could respond, he pulled her in for a thorough kiss.

"Feeling better are we?"

The two quickly jumped apart, looking like guilty teenagers on a first date.

Dr. Owen Harper stood a few feet away, his eyes running over the Doctor in amazement and curiosity. "How did you do that?" He asked. "You were injured worse than Trev."

"Well," the Doctor sniffed. "Trev didn't get kissed by Rose Tyler." He paused and looked down at Rose, "Did he?"

"Definitely not!" Rose assured him.

"Good… because really, that would've been…" he stopped and pulled face to indicate his disgust, then shook the image away and turned back to Dr. Harper. "Can we leave now?"

"Let me give you a once over and I'll let you know." Owen led the Doctor to a curtained off area and indicted he lift his jumper. The Doctor complied. "You saved Trev's life, you know." Owen explained as he examined his patient. "If you hadn't pushed him out of the way when you did, HE would have been the one with the nasty chest wound."

"Oh… lucky me," the Doctor replied dryly.

Owen shrugged, "You seem to have healed quite well from it. Most men wouldn't have survived the night. Good thing you're not quite human." He met the Doctor's eyes, "It was bad, Smith. _Really_ bad."

The Doctor nodded. He had thought as much, based on the fact he had gone into shock when it had happened.

"Good as new now though, yeah?" The Doctor asked.

Owen nodded. "You're fit to go home." He then offered a sly smirk, "No extra curricular activities with Rose for a good week or two though."

The Doctor furrowed his brow, "Extra-curricular?"

Owen raised an eyebrow, thinking perhaps subtlety was lost on aliens. "No _beast with two backs_ for a bit, yeah?"

"Ah!" The Doctor realized, then considered the context. He immediately frowned in disapproval and pointed an accusatory finger at Dr. Harper. "You, sir, have a filthy mind!"

"Yes I do!" Owen replied proudly.

"Shame on you!" The Doctor replied, affronted.

"Oh, I'm not ashamed in the least," Owen grinned. He then called Rose over to take the Doctor home.

The Doctor was more than happy to leave the sterile room to Dr. Harper.

* * *

Rose heard the quiet grunting of alien words as she made her way out of the loo. It was coming from the Doctor's room, and it sounded like he was in pain.

"Doctor?" She quickly made her way down the hall. "Doctor?" she called out again as she gently knocked on his closed door. "You okay?"

The grunting immediately stopped, "Fine, Rose. Molte bene!" He answered through the door. Rose heard shuffling from inside, followed by more alien mutters.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked worriedly. "You sound like you're struggling a bit."

"Fine. Just fine…" more shuffling, then a louder shout.

Rose pushed the door open, "You are _not _fine!" She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the sight before her, then burst out laughing. The Doctor had managed to get his jumper halfway up, and no more, "Are you... STUCK?!"

"I am not STUCK!" he replied, then glanced away. "This is just taking longer then I'd like, what with missing half my chest and all."

Rose rolled her eyes and went up to him, "Here," she grabbed the jumper and tried to tug, "Doctor, you need to let go of the jumper so I can take it off."

He reluctantly conceded.

Rose gently slipped the jumper over his head. "There we go…" She then looked up at him and felt her face flush. If she thought about it long enough, the very act of stripping the Doctor of his jumper was a little more intimate than she was ready for.

"What?" The Doctor asked, his brown eyes studying her with curiosity.

"Um..." Rose quickly stepped away from him and tossed the jumper on the bed, "Tomorrow I suggest you wear a button down."

"Brilliant suggestion," he agreed, then looked apprehensively at the gauze wrapped around his chest. "I'm supposed to change this every night…"

Rose glanced at the gauze, and came to a decision "Sit," she made her way to the bed and patted the space beside her. He obediently followed.

Rose positioned herself beside him and gently unwrapped the old bandages layer by layer. She flinched when she saw the ugly burn on his otherwise smooth skin, "Does it hurt?"

"A bit," the Doctor answered. "Well, I say a bit. Quite a lot, actually." He was quiet a moment, then, "Could you get the sonic? It's over there." He nodded to the leather jacket sitting on a chair a few feet away.

Rose went to retrieve his favourite tool, remembering how it had helped her own injury two months earlier. "What setting?"

"24601," he answered.

Rose nodded and set it. She glanced back at his wound and let out a soft hiss at the pain she felt on his behalf.

"You think THAT'S bad?" he asked, "You should see what I did to the ship! What happened to it anyway?"

Rose offered a small smile, "Went back home. The Kelarians apologized for the trouble. The ship was meant to land one planet over."

"Mars then."

Rose nodded, then proceeded to run the sonic over the injury, bracing her free hand against his ribs as she concentrated on her task.

The Doctor rested his cheek atop her head, "Warm hands," he breathed into her hair.

Rose raised her head to meet his eyes, and felt her breath catch. She couldn't remember him looking at her quite like that before.

She quickly turned back to the sonic, seeing the damaged skin almost healed. "You improved it," she realized

He nodded, "A bit. Still doesn't repair the tissue one-hundred percent yet. That's the best we're going to get."

Rose put the sonic down and let her hand hover over his chest, "Does it still hurt?"

"No…" he replied softly.

She gently slid a hand over the new pink skin and felt one strong, healthy heartbeat.

"You're cold," she worried, then winced at her own words. "Sorry. Of course you are. I just didn't think you would be…" she shifted her weight, "… that cold _everywhere_."

"Body's still alien, Rose," he pointed out, then seemed deep in thought. "Well, I say alien. _Part_ alien, really. The human bits make my body warmer than most Gallifreyans but…" he suddenly stopped. "Well…" he swallowed nervously. "It might make things a little bit awkward at some point in our relationship."

Rose studied the Doctor a moment, then pulled him to his feet and slid her arms around his waist, pressing herself against him.

"Oh!" he gasped. "Yes… you're definitely warm! Human warm. Very nice." A brush of lips against his collarbone, throat and jaw caused him to bite back a groan. "In-injured! St-still injured!" he sputtered.

Rose raised her head and grinned up at him, "Just checking to see how cold you really are…" She then silenced any questions with a full-on snog.

The Doctor took his chances and gently grasped her hips. When she didn't protest, he slid his hands up a little higher, the cloth of her Torchwood-issue tank top bunching up in the process.

The sudden contact of his cold hands against her warm back caused Rose to jerk forward, sending them both off balance.

The Doctor attempted to catch himself, but only ended stumbling back onto the bed, Rose falling atop him.

Rose met his eyes, and laughed. The Doctor, on the other hand, found himself grateful for the Time Lord discipline he had learned so very long ago, lest the feel of Rose atop him send his human hormones into overdrive.

With a sigh, he stared up at the ceiling, arms flat out on either side of him. "Well…" he finally spoke. "That was a bit embarrassing."

This caused Rose to muffle her growing laughter against his shoulder. "S'okay. I appreciate the seduction attempt."

"Oh?" He asked hopefully. "Can I try it again?"

Before Rose could answer, Jackie Tyler's shrill voice travelled down the hall. "Rose! We're going!"

"Babysitting time," Rose sighed as she tried to push herself off him.

The Doctor's arms slid up around her instinctively, the human urge to mate creeping upon him without warning.

"Doctor?" Rose grew apprehensive. "I really _do_ have to go."

It took a moment to register her words. "OH! Yes, Tony!" he finally answered, reluctantly dropping his arms and allowing her to stand. "Baby brother sitting. Well, not for _me_. Claiming disability, me. Just like you two months ago. Made _me_ do all the babysitting then. Your turn now." He furrowed his brow, "I hope serious injury isn't the norm working for Torchwood."

"Not usually, no." Rose stood up and pulled him to a sit. "You gonna be okay?"

He glanced down at his chest. It itched a little, but nothing more.

"I'll be fine," he stood up and cupped her face, resting his forehead against hers. "I'm sorry I'm so rubbish at the seducing bit."

Rose offered a flirtatious smile, "We can work on that."

"Rose, luv! Tony's waiting!" came Jackie's shout again.

Rose rolled her eyes in frustration. The Doctor grinned and pulled her in for a hug. "Not too cold for you, am I?"

"Don't know. Think you could borrow one of Torchwood's temperature controlled exo-skins?" she asked.

He leaned back, a pout on his lips. "Are you having a go at me, Ms. Tyler?"

"Might be, Dr. Smith," she grinned cheekily before leaning into the hug again. "No worries," she placed a light kiss on his chest. "I can get used to it."

In all his one-thousand plus years, the Doctor was quite sure he had never felt more relieved.


	10. Episode 10

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose  
**

Episode 10

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

Torchwood was buzzing as the Doctor returned to duty. To everyone's surprise, he had come off disability leave earlier than expected. _Yes, I'm fine. Thank you…_ he lost count of how many times he had said that.

It wasn't until lunch hour that he finally ran into Trev. The man sat down beside him and began to eat in silence. The Doctor studied him, unsure what to expect.

"What?" Trev asked with a frown. "Never seen a bloke eat before?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow and indicated Trev's sling. "Shouldn't you still be on leave?"

"I've been taken off field work until this heals," he answered, then continued on with his lunch.

"Are you all right?" the Doctor asked with concern.

"I should ask you the same," Trev answered. "Heard you got it worse then me, but here you are… on your feet again."

"Well, I'm special, remember?" The Doctor grinned.

Trev remained silent, then muttered something with his mouth full.

"Sorry, what was that?" the Doctor asked as he leaned in closer. Trev muttered again. "Nope, still can't hear you."

Trev finally swallowed, then took a deep breath and turned to the Doctor. "I said THANK YOU. Thank you for saving my life. Want I should stand on a chair and shout it out?"

"Oh, can you?" the Doctor asked. Trev sneered. "Kidding." He then met Trev's eyes, his voice growing quieter. "Never got _thanked_ before. I appreciate it." He held a hand out to the man beside him.

Trev simply stared at it.

The Doctor pulled his hand back, his voice growing softer. "I'm sorry for not stopping the Cybermen faster, Trev. I'm so, so sorry." He glanced down at the table top, unable to vocalize how he felt.

It was the first time the Doctor had ever stayed in one place long enough to see the results of his actions. He had often been accused of running away by his friends and companions. Now he knew why.

"You call yourself a _Time Lord_, yeah?"

Trev's voice startled the Doctor out of his thoughts. "Yes."

"Can't you go back and change things then?" Trev asked. "Stop Lumic from getting so far? Stop my family from getting killed?"

The Doctor couldn't help but note the hint of desperation in the young man's voice.

He offered a sad smile. "Doesn't work like that, I'm afraid. I don't have the means. And even if I did, the rise of the Cybermen was a set event in this Universe. I can't change that."

"Why the hell not?" Trev demanded.

"Because I _can't_, Trev!" The Doctor insisted. "What happened HAD to happen for any of _this_…" he indicated the Torchwood cafeteria, "…to exist. We change that, we change _everything_ - all the alliances you've made, all the people you've met, all the lives you've saved. You'll have your family, but how many people will have died in their place? For all we know, rebuilding Torchwood prevented alien attacks. Prevented other tragedies. Worse tragedies."

He could sense the resentment pouring off of Trev's body.

"Think," the Doctor encouraged. "Think of a great event in history that seemed like a tragedy at the time, but ended up paving the way for bigger and better things."

Slowly, Trev began to understand.

"Now imagine what would have happened if someone went back and changed that. Or rather, what _wouldn't_ have happened."

Trev took a sharp breath in through his nose, then slowly let it out. He offered a reluctant nod.

"Come now," The Doctor urged, holding his hand out again. "We're on the same side here."

Trev was still hesitant, but reluctantly took the offered hand and squeezed before quickly pulling back.

The Doctor offered a respectful nod, then grinned and clasped an arm around Trev's shoulder, ignoring the other man's painful wince. "This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship!"

"Not bloody likely, spaceman." Trev scowled, but the Doctor noted a lack of bitterness in the young man's voice for the first time.

* * *

"I_ think we need to spend some time alone together," Rose had begun as she sat in the kitchen with Jackie. "No Torchwood, no Tony demanding Uncle John's attention, no stress. Just us."_

_"You don't get enough alone time when he sneaks into your room at night?" Jackie asked with a raised eyebrow. Rose began to protest but Jackie raised a hand to silence her. "I hear him wandering down the hall, Rose. He couldn't be stealthy if his life depended on it."_

_Rose glanced away. "Nothing's happened, Mum."_

_Jackie studied her daughter. "Well, why the hell not?"_

_Rose's eyes went wide, "Weren't you insisting on separate rooms the moment he arrived?"_

_She waved that away. "I didn't want you rushing into anything, but it's been almost a year now. That's enough time to get used to him." She paused a moment, "You really should ask him what kind of sex drive Time Lords have though. Don't want you getting frustrated." _

_"Mum!" Rose sputtered. _

_"No matter," Jackie sighed. "He's a bit human. Surely he's shown some hint by now." _

_Rose's silence was all the answer Jackie had needed._

* * *

That conversation had taken place a week ago and now, here Rose was - with the Doctor - at a five star beach resort two hours outside of London.

The room they had been given was a large suite with one very comfortable looking bed - and a distinct lack of parents in the next room.

Rose opened her luggage and began to unpack before her thoughts could head further into R-rated territory.

She glanced over to see the Doctor standing at the window, his eyes on one of the forested areas that surrounded the beach in front of the hotel.

Rose grew concerned. "Doctor?" He was non responsive. "Doctor!" she repeated louder.

He quickly turned to her, "Sorry?"

"What's so interesting out there?"

He turned back to the window, "I have a confession," he began softly.

Rose grew concerned. "What is it?"

"When I was injured, something kick-started my DNA and helped me heal. Something that was familiar to me."

Rose reached for the hand that wasn't busy turning his hair into a mess of static. She swallowed hard, almost afraid to ask the next question. "You… you didn't start to regenerate, did you?"

"No. I'll never regenerate again." He slid his arms around her, "I never thought of that before, Rose. Well, I _did_ but not to that extent. One life. That's all I have. I'll start to age and I won't be able to replace my body this time. I should be taking better care of it." Rose could hear the melancholy in his voice.

"Welcome to the wonderful world of being human," Rose replied softly as she hugged him tighter.

He glanced out the window, voice soft. "How do you lot deal with this on a daily basis?"

"We try not to think about it too much," Rose explained. "I mean … we know it's gonna happen, but we don't dwell on it. It's a waste of energy."

"Rose?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't want to die," he admitted quietly.

She glanced up and saw the expression on his face. "Look at me?"

He did so.

"I don't wanna die either," she explained, "But it's gonna happen someday. That doesn't mean I can't plan to stay with you forever." She brought his mouth down for a tender kiss. "Forget about the future and the past and every'thin else you think about in that big brain of yours. Just focus on the present now. If you don't, you're gonna miss all the good stuff."

He swallowed hard, then slowly nodded in agreement. "You're absolutely right, Rose Tyler! Focus on the present." He tightened his arms around her. "The present feels all soft and warm right now. Smells nice too." He leaned down and kissed her, then pulled away to take in the rest of the room. "Oh! It's lovely." He exclaimed as his eyes darted around.

"You just noticed?" Rose asked with a smirk.

"Well… I noticed as soon as I walked in. Even noticed the little crack in the ceiling in the upper left corner. I just didn't vocalize it."

Rose laughed and shook her head, "There's tea downstairs."

"Shall we then?" He asked as he held an arm out to her.

"We shall," Rose agreed as she took the proffered arm and let the Doctor lead her out the door.

* * *

Rose adjusted her bikini top and lay back on her lounger. She wasn't sure whether it was the sun, or the intensity of the Doctor's gaze that made her skin feel so warm. She turned her head towards the man in question and he quickly glanced away, suddenly finding the water interesting.

She sighed and slid her sunglasses on as she soaked up the warmth.

It was becoming clear that she would have to make the first move if she wanted their relationship to progress. She couldn't help but wonder if the Doctor was like this in the past too.

"What was your marriage like?" Rose suddenly found herself asking. She quickly closed her mouth, regretting her question.

The Doctor glanced at her, brow furrowed. Then he grinned, as if realizing something. "Time to talk about past relationships then?" he asked. "I read about this part."

"You did?"

He nodded, then shifted in his beach chair to face her. "My mate. All right. Here goes," he took a deep breath, and began to speak as if he had rehearsed. "Our parents were on the Time Lord high council and arranged our mating – we don't have _marriages_, per se. But unions. It's all the very impressive business of matching up rank and genetics to determine the best possible offspring."

Rose studied him, feeling a bit sad at the calculating way his first relationship had been sorted. "So you didn't love her?"

He seemed taken aback by that. "Well… I was _fond_ of her. She was a good lady." He continued, "We had two kids. Raised them in that stuffy Time Lord way – no birthday parties, no special occasions. No Christmas." His voice rose an octave. "Can you believe that? No Christmas!"

Rose offered a small smile, "Thought Christmas was only an Earth thing."

He shrugged, "Well, yeah, but it's getting pretty popular outside the solar system." He shook away the memory of the most disastrous Christmas he had ever endured onboard a space cruise ship. "Anyway, I grew restless eventually and … _borrowed_… a TARDIS."

"Borrowed?" Rose repeated.

"Well, it was being decommissioned," he explained. "Larera didn't want to come. Said she was going to join the Time Lord high council just like her parents." He sighed. "We went our separate ways after that. Larera seemed quite happy about it though. I was driving her nutters." He winked, then continued. "We stayed in touch, of course. I came back home when Susan – my grand-daughter – was born. Spent a lot of time with her. To make up for being an absentee father, I suppose. When Susan turned fifteen, she wanted to go traveling with her ol' Granddad."

He smiled. "Susan and I traveled together for a while. A bit of TARDIS trouble landed us on Earth in the mid twentieth century. The sixties. I spent weeks - no, _months_ - trying to fix it. Susan wanted to go to a Human school in the meantime. See what the aliens were like. Top of the class, she was. A genius. So much so that two of her teachers grew a bit too curious about her."

"Oh dear…"

He nodded. "Turned out all right though. Ian and Barbara became my first human companions. They weren't all that fond of me, mind you. I was a bit crotchety back then. Even _you _wouldn't have liked me, Rose. I was all grumpy and self-important. Ian and Barbara, and even Susan showed me I didn't know as much as I thought I did. It was a bit humbling, really."

Rose raised an eyebrow, "You're humble?"

"Well…" he rubbed the back of his neck, "I am _now_."

"You must have been _unbearable _back then!"

"Oi!" the Doctor protested.

Rose laughed, "So what happened with Susan?"

"Ah… she fell in love with a human and I insisted she live happily ever after with him." He met Rose's eyes, voice soft. "I suppose we were more alike than I thought." He then clapped his hands to signify the end of the story. "Your turn!"

Rose glanced away. "Not much to say. First boyfriend was in a rock band. Thought he was the greatest thing ever. Gave him everything I had. He cheated on me, spent all my money on drugs and alcohol, then dumped me and left me in debt."

The Doctor's face fell. "Oh. Sorry."

Rose shrugged. "I was young and stupid." She waved a hand, wanting to be over with the story of Jimmy Stone. "Then there was Mickey, but you know about him."

"Ahh, Mickey. I think I actually miss the idiot."

Rose offered a sad smile, "Me too sometimes." She then reached out and took his hand. "S'okay. It's just you and me now, yeah?"

The Doctor grinned. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

* * *

­For once, Rose was grateful the Doctor's body was a touch cooler than her own. He was quite comfortable to curl up against as they slept in a room that was just a little too warm for her liking.

Or perhaps it was the company that made her feel that way.

She snuggled closer and slid an arm around him.

"Comfortable?" he muttered into her hair.

Rose smiled. "Very. Thank you." She raised her head to meet his eyes… and knew this was it. The one chance – maybe the only chance – she would have to press her courage to its limit.

She slowly reached up and tangled her fingers in the Doctor's hair, pulling him down for a thorough kiss, her thigh snaking over his hip with purpose.

"Rose…" he moaned, then clamped his mouth shut. That had sounded a little more unseemly than he had planned.

"Yes," she answered.

"Yes what?" He asked, then the realization hit. "OH. Yes _that_. I wasn't… I mean… I didn't think we-" He stopped. "Yes!"

Rose responded with another thorough kiss, this one tasting of so much lust and pheromones, his remaining Time Lord senses were drowning in it.

He swallowed nervously as their interaction grew heated, "Just so you know, it's been quite a few centuries-OH!" He gasped, suddenly finding himself unable to speak anything remotely coherent. _Hands! Hands in new places! **Rose's** hands in new places!_

His mind was racing, his Time Lord discipline gone.

In desperation, he quickly rifled through the photographic memories of several tomes he had read on human coupling, and attempted to see which recommendations would work on the woman in his arms.

She was quite agreeable to most of them.

To ease his nerves, the Doctor began to calculate the time. That first kiss had been at 2h33m26s.

He then documented the various stages that followed – each more intense than the other - and made note of one very awkward moment at 2h47m43s in which Rose was intimately reminded of their temperature differences and unintentionally demonstrated a bit of her Torchwood training.

At 2h49m04s, he cried out several undignified Gallifreyan words when Rose's warmer body finally adapted to his cooler one. 59.6 seconds later, Rose cried out several undignified English words when his inhuman body skilfully adapted to human coupling.

At 3h01m54s, the Doctor found himself missing his respiratory by-pass system as he stared up at the ceiling gasping for breath, Rose's limp form still entwined with his. He also found he only had the strength to sputter out three words:

"That was _brilliant_!"

Rose sighed contentedly in agreement and flopped over onto her back.

The two then lay in companionable silence for 10.4 minutes, shoulders pressed against each other, fingers entwined.

At 3h14m43s, the Doctor told Rose he loved her.

2.3 seconds later she responded in kind.

And at 4h13m33s, they started all over again.

* * *

When Rose awoke, she saw the Doctor standing at the window in his pyjama bottoms. She pushed out of the bed and slid on his discarded top. "Sense anything?" she asked as she moved in front of him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"It called to me," he began softly as he returned the embrace. "Last night after we…" his cheeks flushed. "My shields were down. I heard it loud and clear."

"What isit?" she asked.

He took a deep breath and released it, "A piece of home."

Rose knew he wasn't referring to the Tyler mansion. "_Where_ is it, then?"

"Section 8, back at Torchwood Towers."

"Oh…" Rose replied. "Might be a bit difficult getting in there."

"I have no doubt, but I NEED to get to it, Rose. Absolutely need to! It's crying out for me."

Rose nodded, "We'll figure out a plan after we take our showers, yeah?"

He held her tighter and pressed his cheek against her hair, "Thank you."

Rose gave him a quick kiss, then headed towards the bathroom, only to find the Doctor following no more than two feet behind her.

She turned to him. He glanced away, rubbing the back of his neck, "I was thinking… maybe we shouldn't waste time taking _two_ showers."

Rose raised an eyebrow, then grabbed the Doctor's hand and pulled him into the shower with her.

* * *

The Doctor and Rose arrived back at Torchwood after hours on Sunday night. Everyone was still home for the weekend save for a few scientists working on last minute experiments.

The two headed into the control room and, with a little bit of what the Doctor called _jiggery pokery_, set the cameras to loop the last five hours worth of data.

They then quietly snuck into the lift.

The Doctor removed the access panel underneath the buttons and pulled out the sonic screwdriver. He then set the computerized system to allow access to all floors despite the lack of a security code.

After a few nervous moments, the two found themselves in the sub-basement – below the weevil-infested regular basement.

"Is it in there?" Rose whispered as they stood before a large metal door with the words _Section 8_ stencilled in black. He nodded and used the sonic to allow them access once again.

So far, so good.

As the two walked down a sterile corridor, the Doctor gripped Rose's hand instinctively.

"No security?" Rose asked as they slowly reached the laboratory doors.

He nodded to the cameras in the corners. "Security is watching a five hour loop at the moment."

"I thought there'd be someone posted at the door… or something."

The Doctor stopped in mid-stride. "Maybe it's _something_."

He reached into his pocket – having worn his full blue suit this time – and pulled out a can of misting spray. He released it in front of him to reveal red lasers criss-crossing in front of the door they had almost forced open.

"Good instincts, Ms. Tyler."

"Thank you, Dr. Smith…"

He fixed a setting on his sonic, and ran it over the lasers. He then sprayed again, and found the lasers gone.

"What did you do?"

"Reversed the polarity of the neutron flow," he answered.

Rose looked a little perplexed. "That doesn't even make sense."

He ignored her comment "Come on then." He forced the doors partially open and gently pushed Rose into the lab before shimmying through himself and letting them close again.

Rose glanced around the large, empty, sterile room. "I thought it was here." She looked up at the Doctor, stricken. "After all that?"

"No," the Doctor shook his head. "It IS here. I know it is." He turned in a slow circle and raised his voice. "Please show yourself…" he called out. "I've heard you calling. I've come to help!" He was silent a moment, listening. He closed his eyes, brow wrinkled in concentration. He nodded as if he were having a silent conversation.

Rose studied him. "Doctor? What's going on?"

Her question was soon answered as the metal wall before her parted, revealing a dark corridor that looked neither safe nor welcoming.

He grinned and pulled her into the gaping darkness. She pulled back, hesitant. "Don't worry, Rose. We have permission."

"And what gave us permission?" She asked as she finally gave in to his lead. "We're walking about in the dark in a hallway that isn't really a hallway."

"You'll see," the Doctor insisted as they continued on.

"I don't understand," Rose gripped the Doctor's arm as they walked. "We're in some invisible room?"

"Not a room. Not invisible," he shook his head. "Your government probably thought they found some kind of spatial disturbance like the rift and built this room around it. They had no idea."

After a few more minutes, Rose could see a green light up ahead and hear a soft humming. The Doctor's pace quickened, the glow reflecting the excited look on his face.

Soon they entered the light. Rose quickly closed her eyes, momentarily blinded. She opened them again ever so slowly, and gasped.

She was in what looked like a large cavern.

A column stood in the middle of the cavern, a six-part console surrounding it. The light began to dim, leaving a faint glow with which to see by. She let go of the Doctor's hand and went to the central column.

"Doctor…!" She gasped as she ran her fingers over the cool metal console, "It's a TARDIS!"


	11. Episode 11

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 11

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

"It's really a TARDIS," Rose gasped as she looked around the oddly shaped cavern once more. She had said it once, but it bore repeating.

"Yes," the Doctor replied as he placed a hand on the central column. "She's been here for a long time."

"How long?" Rose asked.

He closed his eyes, concentrating. Perhaps asking the TARDIS herself. "A thousand years, at least. She's badly damaged. Weak."

"Can you fix her?" Rose asked worriedly.

He opened his eyes slowly, "Maybe temporarily. Enough to move her closer to home. But once we get her safe, she might just keep herself grounded." He looked at Rose, "I don't think we'll be travelling with her, Rose."

He could see the disappointment on Rose's face, but also the understanding. "Where's her pilot?" She asked as she glanced around, eyes lighting up. "If there's another Time Lord, maybe-"

"He's gone," The Doctor interrupted gently. "Dead. I dreamt about him a few months back," he shuddered at the memory. "Died of old age over and over and over again, trapped in a time bubble. It must have been excruciating."

Rose winced at his description and the humming she had heard earlier changed into something else.

Wailing.

Her breath caught. "She sounds so sad…"

"She's been suffering," the Doctor replied. "When she sensed me, she called out for help." He met Rose's eyes, "And she saved my life." He noted her look of confusion and explained. "After I was hurt, she sensed I had enough Time Lord DNA in my body to kick-start a healing coma."

"I didn't know she could do that."

"She's a type 103. Can tap into a Time Lord's mind and body if need be." Rose looked concerned. "Being part human, though, we can never have a complete connection. Not like she had with her original pilot," he clarified.

Rose nodded, then stroked the control panel, "Thank you," she said softly. "For bringing him back to me."

"Her and I are the last survivors of the Time War," the Doctor murmured quietly.

"How'd she get here?" Rose asked.

"From what I understand, the fighting ripped a hole between dimensions. Sent her here." Rose paled, and the Doctor understood. "Could explain a lot about why this Universe seemed so accessible from the other one without any Time Lord intervention." He then took a deep breath and leaned back against the console, "Still… the tears are gone for good now."

"So tell me about this Type 103," Rose requested as she walked around what she now considered the control room.

The Doctor stroked the console, "She was bred as a weapon. Unlike my Type 40, Type 103s were developed about a year or so after the Time War begun. Very defensive about who comes near them, too. She was even hesitant to let an inferior species in."

He quickly caught himself and turned to the blonde a few feet away from him, "Not that I think you're inferior, of course. You're Rose Tyler, and Rose Tyler is brilliant." He grinned, then glanced back at the column. "But Time Lords have…" he paused. "… _had_… that attitude. Type 103s picked up on it." He sniffed, "Thought humans took too long to develop space travel. Very primitive, you lot."

"Doctor…" Rose warned before the Doctor could dig himself deeper.

"Sorry," he apologized quickly. "Point is, she didn't want to let you in 'till she sensed Time Lord DNA."

"But I'm _human_."

"Of course you are," he pulled her close and planted an enthusiastic kiss atop her head. "Wonderfully, beautifully human."

"So how could a human have Time Lord DNA?" She asked as she hugged him back, then added. "Aside from having a human/Time Lord meta-crisis."

"OH, yes…well…" he rubbed the back of his neck and shifted his weight. "Genetic transfer."

Rose leaned back and studied him warily, "What do you mean _genetic transfer_?"

The Doctor glanced back at the central column, jamming his hands into his pockets, "Well, you and I.._.transferred_… DNA last night. And again this morning." He cheeks reddened. "Genetic transfer."

Rose let out a snort of laughter, "Is _that_ what Time Lords call it then?"

"Are you having a go at me, Ms. Tyler?" The Doctor pouted.

She slid her hands over his backside and pressed against him. "Not as long as you promise me a good, long _genetic transfer_ in the near future, Dr. Smith."

He let out something akin to a squeak but before he could react to the pheromones she was releasing, something else caught his eye.

He stumbled back from the tempting invitation and walked a few feet away, picking something up off the floor. One quick lick told him all he needed to know.

"What is it?" Rose asked as she came up to him.

"Dirt. Mud, actually. I'd say about twenty years old. Probably from before Torchwood built this room around her."

Rose shook her head in awe "You really need to explain to me how licking something can tell you everything about them."

"Well, that's easy! _Taste_ is actually the best way for a Time Lord to determine the chemical makeup of an object," he brought is lips to her ear, voice dropping low. "Or person."

Rose's eyes went wide when she caught the innuendo. Before she could respond, however, he quickly hopped back to the console. "Now let's see if this girl has enough energy to power up, shall we?" he suggested, rolling on the balls of his feet as his hands flew across the controls.

He studied the screen readouts, then pulled off a side-panel and crawled underneath. "C'mon … just give me that little bit of spark…" he begged the ship.

Rose heard the hum of the sonic screwdriver and suddenly felt the long-abandoned TARDIS begin to shake. "Doctor!"

"Hold on! Working on it!"

The ringing of a loud bell filled the room, causing her to clamp her hands over her ears. She heard the Doctor shout something about a cloister bell as he continued with his task. The dim lights suddenly began flickering off and on until finally the shaking stopped and all went silent.

"Doctor?" Rose called nervously, reaching out to find him in the sudden darkness.

"Here," he grabbed her hands and guided them to the console. "Feel those switches? On the left. Yes… there. Flip them up when I say so."

She heard more noisy clanging, and finally, "NOW!"

Rose quickly did as instructed and the lights powered up again.

Before Rose could ask what she had done, the two heard voices shouting outside the ship, followed by the stamp of boots along the floor. She held her breath.

"We received reports of movement down here," came a voice.

"No sign of anything 'cept the usual," a second voice answered.

"What is that sound?" the first one spoke again. "Like grinding."

"Probably rats in the vents again," the second one responded.

There were a few tense moments of silence, then the first voice spoke once more. "I suppose it was a false alarm. All right then… everyone back to your posts!"

Rose let out a relieved sigh as the voices and footsteps retreated.

"Good girl," The Doctor spoke to the ship. "One more thing, then you can rest for a bit." He waited for a response, and seemed to receive it before programming the console for the next step.

Rose felt the ship shudder and shake and heard the engines power up.

A few minutes later, they were home.

* * *

"You did WHAT?" Pete Tyler boomed when the Doctor and Rose explained why a blue police box had now attached itself like a garden gnome to his sprawling green backyard.

"We had to get her out of there, Dad," Rose protested.

"You stole top secret government property!"

"_Time Lord_ property," the Doctor corrected. "It never belonged to your government, Pete."

"They didn't even know what they had," Rose added. "The Doctor figures they thought it was some kind of spatial disturbance. She camouflaged herself to look like her surroundings."

Pete frowned, "Doesn't seem to be doing that _now_."

"Well…" the Doctor tugged on an ear. "She must have picked up the image of the other TARDIS from my head and tried to make me feel more at home. Rather sweet, actually."

Pete was unimpressed. "And now that this so-called spatial disturbance has disappeared, you don't think the lot down in Section 8 are going to wonder what happened?"

"Oh they'll wonder," the Doctor answered. "But they'll never figure it out. Hard to miss what you never had."

"But I still have a blue police box sitting in my yard," Pete replied.

"Don't worry about that," the Doctor said. "I have a plan."

"Is it as brilliant as the one that ended with you breaking into Section 8?" Pete asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, better than that!" The Doctor grinned. "So much better, Pete!"

* * *

A month had passed since the Doctor and Rose had rescued the new TARDIS and brought it home. Pete had finally understood that leaving a TARDIS in the hands of the government would have proven to be more problematic than necessary.

Rose looked out over the backyard – a good acre of land – for any sign of the Doctor and a blue police box, but no luck. The TARDIS had moved to a more secluded spot to rest herself and the Doctor had been spending almost every free moment tending to her.

Rose was staring to wonder if it was normal to be jealous of a ship.

But the Doctor came back every night and the two would jokingly discuss the type of home they would like to live in one day - doors, carpets, and a mortgage.

For fun, they looked at dream homes they knew they could never afford on their Torchwood salaries. They even started picking out paint colours and wood panelling.

It was a good sign, Rose thought. The Doctor had made it clear he was planning a future with her, and desperately wanted their relationship to progress.

Rose silently smiled at that.

By _progress_, of course, he had meant he wanted to be intimate with her without Jackie and Pete in close proximity. They had been intimate only four times in the last month for fear they would be caught by curious parents. And those four times had been when Pete and Jackie had taken a weekend holiday.

Rose would be lying if she said she didn't miss his attentions. She did, after all, greatly enjoy it when he checked her body's chemical makeup.

"Rose!"

Startled out of her thoughts, Rose spun around to see the Doctor racing excitedly through the front door – wearing a new blue pinstriped suit. He quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her along behind him. "I have something to show you!"

Unable to resist, she followed him into the backyard. He led her along the green grass for a few minutes before they finally came upon a Victorian-style mansion.

"Where did this come from?" Rose gasped, awe in her voice for what stood before her.

"You'll see," he replied cheerfully as he lifted her off her feet and carried her over the threshold.

When he finally put her down, Rose froze, eyes wide.

They stood in a large foyer with a vaulted carved ceiling. On the left was a mat for shoes and boots and an antique cherry wood table on which to place keys and purses. On the right was a walk-in coat closet. Several feet ahead was a lush staircase leading up, complete with a cherry wood banister.

All the things the two had imagined being in a home such as this.

"I'll show you upstairs in a bit," the Doctor grinned as he pulled her down the foyer into a cozy sitting room. It included an antique area rug over a wood floor, armchairs and a soft settee, a fireplace, and a large window covering most of the south wall, decorated with long ornate curtains.

The only thing out of place in the room was the TARDIS console that stood glowing green in the middle.

"Oh my god!" Rose gasped.

With a snap of the Doctor's fingers, the console turned into a carved wooden post that reached from ceiling to floor. It matched two other posts that had been placed at varying intervals in the room.

The Doctor grinned proudly. "I redesigned her. A bit of this and that and voila – a house! A fairly nice house, if I do say so myself."

"It's beautiful," Rose replied, her throat constricting. A worrisome thought came to her then, "But weren't you trying to _fix_ her?"

The Doctor glanced at where the central column had been, "Well, she's barely travel worthy, Rose. She can hop short distances, but…" he took a deep breath. "She was traumatized by the Time War. She doesn't _want_ to travel. Not now, anyway. Maybe at some point in the future. Who knows?"

"She's fine with the redesign then?" Rose asked.

"Oh yes. She's quite happy. Wants us to make this our home. Permanently."

Rose smiled, "Really?" He nodded. "I wish I could hug her."

"You can hug _me_, and I'll pass the message along," the Doctor replied as he pulled Rose into an embrace. Rose heard a gentle hum from the TARDIS in response.

The Doctor then took a step back and offered a hand, "Upstairs is where the bedrooms are but, if you don't mind… whatever we do in there will _not_ be shared with the TARDIS."

Rose laughed and the two immediately rushed back to the foyer, racing up the stairs.

She stopped at the top and looked around. There were several rooms, but at the end of the hall stood double doors with intricate symbols carved in the dark wood. Rose put her hand on one of them. "What is this?"

"It's high Gallifreyan," he explained. "Our names, specifically. It's all very ceremonial. Usually done to honour a union between two Time Lords. Well… in our case, a Time Lord and a human."

Rose stared up at him, speechless. Did he just imply that he considered her his wife? Or the Gallifreyan equivalent, at least?

"Go on then," he eagerly indicated the door in front of them.

Rose swallowed the emotional lump in her throat and turned the handle, slowly pushing the door open. She stepped into the room and felt her jaw drop at the site before her.

The Doctor stood beside her, a bundle of suppressed energy as he rolled back and forth on the balls of his feet, hands deep in his pockets.

The look on his face made it clear he was rather proud of this room. It had an ornate King sized bed covered with a wine comforter, matching furniture done in the same cherry wood as the rest of the TARDIS interior, gold and red wallpaper, and a large Persian area rug.

The Doctor placed a hand on the West wall, and the panel slid away to reveal a walk in closet filled with pinstriped suits of varying colours – except brown, Rose noted.

"There's one on that side too," the Doctor indicated the East wall and she opened it to reveal her own walk in closet filled with all her favourite clothes.

Rose closed it and turned back to the Doctor, her eyes filling with tears as it finally hit her that he had done all this – he had created a home – for _them._

She threw her arms around him with such enthusiasm that he ended up stumbling back and landing on the bed. "Happy then?" he asked.

Instead of answering, Rose brought her mouth down to his and pushed him back onto the mattress. She then proceeded to show him _exactly_ how 'happy' she was for everything he had done.


	12. Episode 12

**The New Adventures of the Doctor and Rose**

Episode 12

**_Special thanks to my beta, cytherea999_**

* * *

Rose stared at the double doors before her, fingers tracing the Gallifreyan carvings. "So," she started, "You say this represents some kind of Time Lord union?"

"Yep," the Doctor answered, popping the 'p'. "Your name and my name."

She turned to him, eyebrow raised. "You didn't marry me without my knowledge, did you?"

"What?" He sputtered. "Of course not! Sort of needs a whole ceremony and all. Would be impossible for you not to know about it." He paused. "Well, I say impossible. _Nearly_ impossible. Unless we were on Estaria, then not impossible at all."

"Sorry?" Rose asked, brow furrowed.

"On Estaria, they drug the bride and carry on the ceremony while she's passed out. It's tradition. Lousy tradition, if you ask me…" He stopped when he realized Rose's attention was back on the carvings. "Anyway," he gestured to the wood. "This just declares that we're mates. That is, the copulating kind. Not the drinking buddy kind."

Rose smiled approvingly, "Very tactful."

"I'm nothing if not tactful," The Doctor declared, but the look on Rose's face said otherwise. "Right. Well," he changed the subject. "There's something I'd like to show you."

The Doctor quickly dragged Rose down the stairs and into the sitting room. He snapped his fingers and one of the wooden pillars turned into the TARDIS' main console.

"Here…" he pressed a button on the console, and a hologram took form a few feet away. It was of the Doctor's current body.

Rose remembered a similar holographic display of the Doctor from a few years ago. At that time, it was saying goodbye.

"What's this now?" she asked, eyebrow raised.

"I figured you should know a bit more about me," the Doctor offered. "The TARDIS plucked these images right from my infallible memories," he grinned.

The first image took place, and Rose studied it carefully. It showed an aged man with grey hair and a walking stick wearing an Edwardian style suit. She smiled warmly. "Is that your granddad?"

"What? NO!" The Doctor protested. "That's ME. The _first _me."

Rose glanced at the image, then back to her Doctor, then back to the image again. "Time Lords regenerate younger?" she asked. She momentarily pictured her Doctor regenerating into a young man in his mid-twenties with hair even wilder than his current coif.

For the first time, she realized how grateful she was that HER Doctor would never regenerate again. "Sorry. Go on."

He nodded, and the image changed, revealing a man with a Beatles haircut and an ill-fitting suit. "You turned into a hobbit?"

"Rose!"

She grinned up at him, tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth, and he realized she was joking.

The Doctor continued showing her the remaining images, and came to the conclusion that Rose didn't fancy men who wore ruffles and velvet a la Anne Rice's vampires. Or looked like they were auditioning for "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat". Or thought question-mark sweater vests made a good fashion statement.

She did like cricket, however. And blonde hair - but didn't seem very appreciative of decorative vegetables. She also asked if the TARDIS could reproduce a long scarf. When he asked why, she mumbled something about tying things up. The Doctor was not quite sure what she meant, but he had a feeling she was being naughty.

He could, in fact, _smell_ her thinking naughty thoughts when his eighth self took form before them.

"Shame your hair grows UP instead of down now," she declared. The Doctor tried to prevent himself from pouting, but was unsuccessful. "Oh come on," she reached for his hand. "I'm kidding!"

She then met his eyes and wrapped her arms around him, voice growing softer. "Thank you for showing me this. And just so you know," she slid her fingers into his hair and brought his mouth down within an inch of hers, "I like _this_ body the best."

Rose pulled her Doctor into a deep kiss, which was soon followed by the touch of welcomed hands, the tugging off of clothing – and an inopportune phone call from Torchwood that proved far more effective than cold water.

* * *

Pushing away the annoyance and frustration of being interrupted mid-shag, Rose led Jake and Les aboard an alien ship that had had the audacity to crash beside the Thames on her and the Doctor's day off.

The inside of the ship was dark and quiet. Eerily so.

With a weapon in one hand and a mini-DVR with a very bright light in the other, Rose explored the cold metallic corridors, feeding what she saw back to Control.

"What do you make of this, Doctor?" Rose asked, her voice muffled through the oxygen mask she was wearing.

"Telarian ship," the Doctor replied in her ear piece. "Nice folk. The President had me 'round for tea once when I was visiting a neighbouring solar system."

"That was in the _other_ universe, Spaceman." Trev's voice pointed out in the background. "Doesn't mean these blokes are the same."

"Oi," The Doctor protested. "I've been studying up. Species here aren't so different from species there!"

"… 'cept those scientist aliens who tried to kill us for looking at their research!" Trev shot back.

"That was just a misunderstanding!" the Doctor protested.

"Misunderstanding my-"

"Doc," Jake interrupted the argument, "Are these blokes easy to talk to?"

"Should be," the Doctor answered, ignoring Trev's muttering in the background. "They've mastered thousands of languages. English should be one of them. If not, I could translate for you."

"Thanks," Jake replied, relieved his job as First Contact liaison wouldn't leave him mumbling like a fool.

"Atmosphere is oxygen-rich," Les informed Rose as she glanced at her scanner. "I'm going to take the mask off. Hard to talk."

"Just be careful," the Doctor's voice responded, "It might be a different mix of oxygen than you're used to. Too much or too little may make you dizzy or ill. If you start to feel out of sorts, put your mask back on."

"Thank you, John," Les replied sweetly. "I hope Rose appreciates how wonderful and caring you are."

"Stop flirting with the spaceman, Les!" Trev shot back.

"Oh shut your hole," Les answered, the sweetness long gone.

Rose released a small laugh at the exchange. "I appreciate the Doctor very much, Les. Twice in one go, sometimes."

"And what the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?" Trev demanded through the comm.

"If you don't know what she's referring to, then you're doing it wrong," Les replied.

"Doing WHAT wrong?"

"Back to the mission," Rose interrupted. "So, the Telo-" she stopped and waited.

"Telarians," the Doctor finished for her.

"…Telarians sent out a mayday," Rose continued, "Did they specify what the emergency was?"

She heard the clacking of a keyboard through her ear piece, then Trev's voice again. "Got some audio here," he played what had been captured. It consisted of a lot of screaming and yelling in a language Rose had never heard before.

"Doctor?" Rose asked. "Can you make any of that out?"

"Trying. Play it again, Trev," the Doctor answered.

The screaming and yelling was repeated.

"Trouble. Help. Insane. Hurting… no… killing. Crew is killing… virus?" The Doctor stopped. "The crew is killing a virus?" The recording played again. "OH! The crew is being KILLED by a virus! Got it. WAIT! Put your masks back on!" He shouted desperately.

Rose, Jake and Les immediately did so.

"If I have this correct, there was a virus that was causing some crew members to go crazy and kill one another."

"Thought you said they were _nice folk_," Trev accused.

"They ARE," the Doctor answered. "But apparently not when infected with an alien virus!"

"We should be okay," Rose said. "We haven't come into contact with any bodies yet."

"Maybe," the Doctor answered. "Scan for any airborne contaminants."

Les did as he asked. "Nothing here," she said. "Maybe it was something they ate?"

"Possibly," the Doctor answered. "Give me a moment." The clacking of a keyboard was heard once again, then Les let out a startled curse. "Sorry. I have remote control of your scanner, Les. I inputted my knowledge of alien viruses and cross-referenced it with human and Time Lord biology to see if there's anything in the air that might harm either of us."

"And?"

"Nothing. Whatever it was, it's either gone, or only affects Telarians. Oh, Rose. Hold up the DVR for a moment?" She did so, focusing on the door in front of her. "That might be the mess hall. And if that's where most of the crew was when this virus hit…" he let the sentence trail.

Jake took a few steps back from the big metal door. "I don't fancy seeing a pile of dead aliens right now."

"Doctor," Rose spoke, "Can you find out what caused this? Just in case another ship has the same problem?"

"I can probably whip up a vaccine or antidote to have on hand. I need to take samples of the virus though."

"All right then," Rose nodded. "We'll do a few more scans to make sure everything's clear, then send the… _specimens_… your way." Rose often found it was easier to refer to the dead that way. It saved her from having a complete emotional breakdown after all she had seen.

"Rose?"

"Yes, Doctor?"

"Are you all right?"

Rose realized he must have heard the slight shake in her voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks."

"Be careful then."

"I will. Promise."

When the Doctor spoke next, the light tone in his voice made her smile. "I've heard _that_ before…"

* * *

On the drive home, Rose noticed the Doctor acting oddly. He was starting out the front window, hands clasping his knees so tightly his knuckles were turning white.

"You okay?" she finally asked.

He glanced over to her then quickly turned away. "Fine. Yes. Fine. Perfectly fine."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure."

"It was a pretty gruesome sight on that ship," she offered. "I can understand if it bothered you."

"I fought in the Time War, Rose," the Doctor answered blithely, not finding a need to expand on that.

Rose nodded and continued to drive. She soon began to notice a change in behaviour from the man beside her. He seemed to be leaning towards her, nostrils flaring.

"Doctor?" She worried.

"You smell good…" he murmured. "Perfume?"

"Can't wear perfume at Torchwood, remember?"

"Right. Of course," he nodded, "Don't know how it'll affect different species and all that." He still studied her with great intensity. "Rassilon, but you're beautiful…"

Rose blushed and offered him a quick glance before turning back to the road. "You sure you're okay?"

"Oh, I'm fine…" he whispered airily, still staring at her as if she were the most delicious thing he had ever seen.

Rose watched out of the corner of her eye as the Doctor dug his fingers into his thighs, something akin to a moan escaping his throat.

"Doctor?" Rose was growing more concerned by the moment.

He looked away and stared out the window. "Get us home," he commanded hurriedly.

There was such urgency in his voice that Rose was becoming a wreck with worry. "Do you need help? Are you sick? Should I call Owen? Oh god, you aren't infected, are you?"

"No. No. I just… feel funny is all," he explained. "Dizzy. But good dizzy. Which is very different than bad dizzy. Bad dizzy happens when I'm ill. Good dizzy happens when I'm…" he stopped. "Home. Quick. Everything I need is there."

She nodded and pressed harder on the gas, hoping there were no police around.

Seconds after they arrived home, Rose found herself pinned to the wall in the front hall, the Doctor's mouth and body pressed desperately against her as he kicked the door shut with the sole of his red chucks.

When he finally pulled his mouth from hers, all she could do was stare up at him breathlessly. "Not that I mind…" she gasped, "But you could've let me put my stuff away first."

"Couldn't!" he replied hopelessly. "Needed you." He suddenly stumbled away. "Oh… oh dear." He tugged his fingers through his hair, causing the strands to stick straight up.

"What's wrong?" Rose asked.

"I… I want to…" he stopped, seemingly embarrassed.

"You want to _what_?"

"Shag you!" He cried out desperately, then clamped a hand over his mouth. "Sorry, that was rude."

Rude and still not ginger. That was her Doctor.

Rose studied him, brow furrowed. "From this morning?"

"Different from this morning!" He protested. "Feeling a bit… _aggressive_. Well, I say aggressive. More like needy. Well, desperate." His voice became a nervous squeak, "Naughty?"

"Oh?" Rose found this all very fascinating.

"It's your scent, Rose!" He whined, "Have you always smelled like this?" He then shook his head and turned away. "No, I would've noticed before. You've _never_ smelled like this. I mean, you've smelled nice. _Really_ nice. But this is different. Didn't notice it until-" he stopped and slowly turned back to her. "THE SHIP!"

"What about it?"

"When you came off the Telarian ship!" He stepped towards her again. "When you brought the data back to my lab, I wanted to… but no, I had work to do. Lots of logs and records to go through. Bodies to autopsy." He stopped as if realizing something. "You smell like _them_!"

Rose raised an eyebrow, "I smell like dead bodies?"

"YES! I mean… NO!" He stumbled over his words. "That is… a bit. But the dead aliens didn't affect me like this. And how dare you even think that, Rose Tyler!"

"I never said I thought that, but I'm starting to wonder now!" she replied.

"No no no no!" The Doctor insisted. "You. Just you. _That_ smell enhances _your_ smell and makes me want to-" he clamped a hand over his mouth before he could say it again. "Sorry. Being a bad boy. You should punish me, really." He winced at his own words and muttered what Rose guessed was a Gallifreyan curse.

Rose tried to suppress a snicker but the Doctor could tell.

"Oi! You're finding this all very amusing, aren't you?" he accused, though his tone was made less severe by the pout on his lips.

She offered a smirk, "Maybe a bit amusing. Never seen you lose control like this before."

"It's YOU, Rose. You and whatever infected that ship!"

Rose raised an eyebrow, "But I'm feeling fine."

"Yes, of course you are," he thought about that. "But then… that would mean it's not a virus. So _what_?" He let his nostrils flare once more. "That scent…" He looked at her, realization dawning. "You reek of _pheromones_."

"What?!" She asked, eyes wide. "How? I mean, we're not-" she stopped, "_I'm _not all excited at the moment."

"Sorry," he replied, head down. "Bad timing, this." He pressed the heel of his palms into his eyes. "Not your fault," he assured her. "It's something from the ship."

Rose grew worried. "So everyone is suddenly gonna want to sha- _sleep_ with me?"

"They'd better not!" The Doctor snapped possessively, then relaxed a bit. "That is… I mean… just me. Better be just me!" He pulled off his tie and unbuttoned his collar. "Rassilon, it's warm in here," he muttered. "You should take off your clothes…"

"Did you find out anything else about the ship?" Rose asked, trying to keep his mind on track.

"Ship ship ship… yes… the ship. I was studying the ship… no, the private logs. It seems that only 25% of the crew were infected. No. Not infected. Had this… _scent_. It was the other 75% around them that went mad. They became possessive of their crewmates – the ones they were attracted to. Turned on each other thinking it would somehow win them the object of their desires."

"So, basically like two people fighting for the affections of someone else?" Rose asked.

"Yes. But to the death."

Rose grew wary, "And what if the winner's affections weren't returned?"

"Love turned to hate," The Doctor declared as he yanked off his jacket and tossed it across the hall. "And in some cases if their affections _were_ returned, it led to a jealous rage."

"But you're not in a jealous rage," Rose pointed out, hoping against hope that it would stay that way.

"No. Well… I'm not Telarian." The Doctor replied. "It affects other species differently." He continued pacing again, pulling his shirt out of his trousers as he did so. "Oh, this is very distracting. I can't think. Or rather, I CAN think, but I'm thinking of the wrong things! Most of them involving you. And me." He paused a moment, brow furrowed, "And I have a sudden craving for whipped cream. Odd that."

Rose eyed the Doctor as he slid on his glasses and studied his hands as if they held all the answers he needed. "I thought you said there was nothing that would hurt humans on that ship?" she reminded him.

"Well… no virus. That scent, though. Like flowers." He let out a sigh, voice become light, eyes glazing over. "Silky gold flowers. With long lean stems, and sweet pink buds, and round hard-"

"Doctor!" Rose interrupted, starling him out of his reverie, "If you smell something on me that's making you act this way, then Jake and Les will have the same smell on _them_. Would it affect Jake's boyfriend, or Les's…" she paused, "Um… various gentlemen friends like this?"

"I don't know!" The Doctor answered desperately. "I'm Gallifreyan. I can only tell you how it affects _me_. It might affect humans the same way it affected the Telarians. And blimey, it's hot in here! How can you not feel that?" He yanked open his buttons, leaving his shirt hanging on his shoulders as he returned to his nervous pacing.

That was enough for Rose to quickly grab her mobile and call Jake. When he answered, his voice was hoarse.

"Are you okay?" was Rose's first question.

"Yes. But... my bloke just broke up with me," Jake answered. Rose could tell he'd been crying. "We had a bit of a row earlier. Over something that I can't even remember. He said things. Cruel things. Then stormed out. He's never talked to me like that before, Rose."

Rose nodded, "It's okay, Jake. It's not your bloke." She then explained the Doctor's theory and Jake understood.

"Suppose that's a relief then," Jake replied. "Think the Doc can figure out how to fix it?"

Rose glanced over at the Doctor, who seemed unable to take his eyes of her.

"Probably. He's acting a bit strange 'imself, you know."

"Doc's got superior biology," Jake answered. "He can probably control the effects."

"Yeah… sure…" Rose answered as she met the Doctor's desperate pleading gaze. She quickly turned away. "Call Les. See if she had a date tonight."

"Will do," Jake answered. "And Rose… thanks for ringing."

"We'll fix it, Jake. Promise. Just got to help the Doctor get his head straight."

"Good luck," Jake offered.

"Thanks. Talk to you later," Rose answered.

"Later," Jake replied, and the two hung up.

"Big fight with the boyfriend?" The Doctor asked, having gleaned the information from Rose's half of the conversation. Rose nodded. "Body chemistry is a funny thing. Sometimes it can repel instead of attract. Depending on how compatible two people are chemically." He then grinned. "Given the fact that I want to sh-" he stopped, grin fading. "Well, given that fact, it seems you and I are _very_ compatible! Could be the species difference," he considered. "Opposites do attract in some cases." He stepped back from Rose awkwardly. "Attract too much, in this case…" he muttered.

Rose could see the Doctor was visibly shaking in the effort to control his overactive libido – a wonderful thing that she would have welcomed at any other time when he didn't need to think up a solution to a potentially serious problem.

"So what do I do with you?" Rose asked. The Doctor's eyes lit up and it was obvious what he would like her to do. She contemplated him for a few moments. "Jake's sorted, so nothing to worry about there. And Les can take care of herself." Rose knew Les could be very imposing if the situation called for it. The brunette was over one-hundred and eighty centimetres, and well-versed in martial arts. "But you…"

"Yes?" he asked hopefully.

"You need to have a clear head, yeah?"

"Yes," his face fell. "Currently lacking that at the moment."

"You need my help." Rose stated. He looked at her, eyes silently pleading. She drew out her gaze, studying him from top to bottom. "You DO look a bit nice all dishevelled like that." She stepped closer. He was wound tighter than she had ever seen him. "And I'm a bit disappointed we were interrupted on our day off…" he swallowed hard and nervously reached up to pull his glasses off. She stopped his hand, voice dropping low, lips only inches from his. "Leave the brainy specs on."

The Doctor was more than happy to oblige.

* * *

"Bloody wanker!" Les swore as she sat with Rose and Jake in the Torchwood cafeteria and described her latest date. "Told me I wasn't feminine enough for him. Can you believe that? After ONE bloody date? Like I need to deal with that shite. I'm ev'ry inch a lady!"

Rose absently picked at her chips. Les's choice of language despite the assertion that she was a lady was not lost on her. "'Course you are," Rose finally answered. "Perfect lady."

"Bloody right I am!" Les agreed.

"You received the memo about the scent we picked up from the ship, didn't you?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, got it. Still doesn't excuse the git," Les answered.

"Well, it excuses _my_ git," Jake replied.

"And what about _your_ git, Rose?" Les asked.

"Kept me up most of the night," Rose answered, seeing no need to explain _how_ he had kept her up.

"Oh, and speak of the devil," Les muttered as the Doctor bounded into the cafeteria. He spotted Rose and immediately went to sit beside her, pressing his bony hip against hers as he wound one arm around her waist.

"Figured it out," he began as he nuzzled her neck.

"Doctor…" Rose squirmed at the public display of affection.

"Mmm, yes?" he asked, causing her to shiver as his lips brushed over the pulse in her neck.

"Oi!" Les sputtered.

"Oh!" The Doctor looked up as if he had just noticed they were not alone. "Hello."

"What's with Mister touchy-feely here?" Les asked Rose. "Thought he was supposed to be all angry and dump you? Said he kept you up all night."

"Not human," the Doctor explained. "Different effect." He then met Rose's eyes, voice low. "And it wasn't _all_ night. Just _most_ of it."

"Well now!" Jake exclaimed as he turned to an embarrassed Rose, "No wonder you looked so knackered this morning!"

"Wait a moment," Les slammed her hands on the table, "Don't tell me that this _thing_ that turned human blokes into arseholes also turned Time Lords into shag-o-matics!"

The Doctor winced, "That's a rather crude way to phrase it."

"Crude? No, Les is a lady," Rose smirked.

"Oh hush up now," Les muttered.

"So, Doc… you said before that you figured something out?" Jake asked.

"Yes!" The Doctor swallowed the forkful of chips he had stolen from Rose's plate, "I was right about the flowery smell. Reading more logs, they'd been to a planet that had very rare vegetation. Vegetation that made all the inhabitants of the planet rather _affectionate_. Well, I say affectionate. It was like a twenty-four hour love-fest with everyone and everything. That was the norm there, but one species' aphrodisiac is another species _allergy_ – for lack of a better term."

"Oh?" Rose replied.

The Doctor nodded. "The pollen and spores were carried onto the ship by those that had visited the planet, and it went downhill from there. Different body chemistry and all. I recommend you burn any clothes you wore yesterday. And take a few showers to get all the pollen off your body and out of your hair." He advised. "I've formulated an antihistamine to counteract the effects. Torchwood assured me your friends would get it." He looked uneasy, knowing Torchwood would get the antihistamine to the ones that needed it whether they wanted it or not.

"That was fast!" Les smiled.

"I'm clever," the Doctor replied proudly. "I sent a message and instructions to the Inter-planetary Alliance just in case other ships happen to wander into that sector and visit the planet. I recommend you take those showers now," he informed Les and Jake.

"And me as well," Rose pointed out.

"Oh…?" the Doctor looked hopeful.

"By myself," Rose stressed.

His face fell.

"You can't go on like this," Rose explained gently.

He took a deep breath, then nodded. "Right. Of course not." He made to leave, then stopped and cupped Rose's face, leaning in to give her a long deep kiss, ignoring the cheers and whistles that accompanied the very public act.

When he finally pulled away, it took Rose a moment to find her voice. "You did that on purpose!"

"Well, yes," he answered. "But only because I won't be brave enough to kiss you in public when this is all over, repressed Time Lord that I am." He paused, "Though not so repressed when we're alone…"

Les leaned forward eagerly, "Oh, do tell!"

"Well," the Doctor began excitedly, "She loves it when I-"

"Doctor!" Rose interrupted.

"What?" he asked defensively, then realized what he was about to say. "Oh, bugger," he mumbled, clear-headed enough to be embarrassed. "I… I'll go take that antihistamine. Just in case."

"Good idea," Rose agreed.

The Doctor nodded, then jumped to his feet and headed out of the cafeteria.

Les glanced at the blonde in front of her, eyebrows raised in expectation.

"No!" Rose insisted.

"Just tell me one thing at least," Les said, "Does he have any extra alien bits?" Rose remained silent, arms crossed stubbornly. "C'mon, Tyler! I tell you all about _my_ blokes!"

"Whether we want to hear it or not," Jake muttered in response.

"Oi!" Les protested, "You don't exactly keep to yourself either!"

Jake denied the accusation, and Rose could only watch as the two began a back and forth about sharing too much information.

She couldn't wait until this day was over.


End file.
